Paras v.

COMELEC Case Digest

Paras v. COMELEC
G.R. No. 123169 (November 4, 1996)

FACTS:
A petition for recall was filed against Paras, who is the incumbent Punong Barangay. The recall
election was deferred due to Petitioner’s opposition that under Sec. 74 of RA No. 7160, no recall
shall take place within one year from the date of the official’s assumption to office or one
year immediately preceding a regular local election. Since the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) election
was set on the first Monday of May 2006, no recall may be instituted.

ISSUE:
W/N the SK election is a local election.

HELD:
No. Every part of the statute must be interpreted with reference to its context, and it must be
considered together and kept subservient to its general intent. The evident intent of Sec. 74 is to
subject an elective local official to recall once during his term, as provided in par. (a) and par.
(b). The spirit, rather than the letter of a law, determines its construction. Thus, interpreting the
phrase “regular local election” to include SK election will unduly circumscribe the Code for there will
never be a recall election rendering inutile the provision. In interpreting a statute, the Court
assumed that the legislature intended to enact an effective law. An interpretation should
be avoided under which a statute or provision being construed is defeated, meaningless,
inoperative or nugatory.