Case Name Perez vs The Monetary Board

Topic Banking Laws

Case No. | Date G.R. No. L-23307|June 30, 1967
Ponente BENGZON, J.P., J.
Doctrine The Central Bank has no specific duty to prosecute violators of Banking Laws

RELEVANT FACTS
• Damaso Perez instituted an action to compel the monetary board, the Superintendents of the Banks, the
Central Banks and the Secretary of Justice to prosecute, among others, Pablo Roman and several other
Republic Bank officials for violations of the General Banking Act (Secs. 76-78 & 83) and the Central Bank Act,
and for falsification of public or commercial documents in connection with certain alleged anomalous loans
amounting to P1,303,400 authorized by Roman and the other bank officials.
• The Secretary of Justice claimed that it was not their specific duty to prosecute the persons denounced by
Perez.
• The Central Banks and its officials averred that they have already done their duty under the law by referring
to the special prosecutors of the Department of Justice for criminal investigation and prosecution those
cases involving the alleged anomalous loans.

ISSUE: W/N the Central Bank has the specific duty to prosecute violators of Banking Laws and whether or not they
can be compelled by Mandamus.
RULING: Dismissed. Damaso Perez and Republic Bank cannot seek by mandamus to compel respondents to
prosecute criminally those alleged violators of the banking laws. The remedy of mandamus is improper.
Although the Central Bank and its respondent officials may have the duty under the Central Bank Act and the
General Banking Act to cause the prosecution of those alleged violators, yet nothing in said laws that imposes a
clear, specific duty on the former to do the actual prosecution of the latter.