1. MUNICIPALITY OF SAN JUAN vs. COURT OF (d) ₱5,000.
00, for attorney’s fees; and
APPEALS
FACTS:
Under a "Contract For Water Service Connections"
entered into by and between the Metropolitan
Waterworks and Sewerage System (MWSS) and Kwok
Cheung as sole proprietor of K.C. Waterworks System
Construction (KC, for short), the former engaged the
services of the latter to install water service connections.
On 20 May 1988, KC was given a Job Order by the South
Sector Office of MWSS to conduct and effect excavations
at the corner of M. Paterno and Santolan Road, San
Juan, Metro Manila, a national road, for the laying of
water pipes and tapping of water to the respective houses
of water concessionaires.
That same day, KC dispatched five (5) of its workers
under Project Engineer Ernesto Battad, Jr. to conduct the
digging operations in the specified place. The workers
installed barricades at the area where the digging took
place.
The workers dug a hole one (1) meter wide and 1.5
meters deep, after which they refilled the excavated
portion of the road with the same gravel and stone
excavated from the area.
At that time, only ¾ of the job was finished in view of the
fact that the workers were still required to re-excavate
that particular portion for the tapping of pipes for the
water connections to the concessionaires.
Around May 31, 1988, between 10 o’clock and 11 o’clock
in the evening, and the road was flooded it was raining
hard.
That time, Priscilla Chan, was driving her toyota car and
was traversing the right side of Santolan Road towards
the direction of Pinaglabanan, San Juan, Metro Manila. On
board the vehicle also was Assistant City Prosecutor Laura
Biglang-awa, who was seated on the right front seat.
Suddenly, the left front wheel of the car fell on a manhole
where the workers of KC had earlier made excavations. As
a result, the humerus on the right arm of Prosecutor
Biglang-awa was fractured.
Priscilla then contacted the husband of Prosecutor
Biglang-awa who then immediately arrived in the scene
and brought the latter to the nearest hospital.
At the hospital, the attending physician placed a plastic
cast on her right arm. The physician made known that the
injury she suffered was expected to heal in four (4) to six
(6) weeks.
Biglang-awa sustained no deformity and no tenderness of
the area of the injury but she could not sleep on her right
side because she still felt pain in that portion of her body.
In view of the foregoing, Biglang-awa filed before
the Regional Trial Court at Pasig, Metro Manila a
complaint for damages against MWSS, KC, and the
Municipality of San Juan and a number of San Juan
municipal officials.
RTC RULING
After due proceedings, the trial court rendered judgment
in favor of Biglang-awa adjudging MWSS and the
Municipality of San Juan jointly and severally liable to her.
Both defendants are ordered to pay plaintiff the amounts
of:
(a) ₱18,389.55, for actual damages suffered by the
plaintiff;
(b) ₱15,000.00, for moral damages;
(c) ₱10,000.00, for exemplary damages;
(e) to pay the costs.
The CA affirmed the decision of the RTC and increased
the amounts awarded to Biglang-awa.
Hence, this case.
ISSUE:
Whether or not the municipality of San Juan
is liable for the injuries sustained by Prosecutor
Biglang-awa.
Petitioner’s contention:
In denying liability for the subject accident, petitioner
essentially anchored its defense on two provisions of
laws, namely: (1) Section 149, [1][z] of Batas
Pambansa Blg. 337, otherwise known as the Local
Government Code of 1983; and (2) Section 8,
Ordinance 82-01, of the Metropolitan Manila
Commission.
Petitioner maintains that under Section 149, [1][z]
of the Local Government Code,6 it is obliged to
provide for the construction, improvement, repair
and maintenance of only municipal streets,
avenues, alleys, sidewalks, bridges, parks and
other public places. Ergo, since Santolan Road is
concededly a national and not a municipal road, it cannot
be held liable for the injuries suffered by Biglang-awa on
account of the accident that occurred on said road.
Additionally, petitioner contends that under Section 8,
Ordinance No. 82-01, of the Metropolitan Manila
Commission, which reads:
In the event of death, injury and/or damages caused by
the non-completion of such works and/or failure of one
undertaking the work to adopt the required precautionary
measures for the protection of the general public or
violation of any of the terms or conditions of the permit,
the permittee/excavator shall assume fully all liabilities for
such death, injury or damage arising therefrom. For this
purpose, the excavator/permittee shall purchase
insurance coverage to answer for third party liability, only
the Project Engineer of KC and MWSS can be held liable
for the same accident.
RULING OF THE SUPREME COURT
The Municipality of San Juan is liable.
Jurisprudence teaches that for liability to arise under
Article 21898 of the Civil Code, ownership of the roads,
streets, bridges, public buildings and other public works,
is not a controlling factor, it being sufficient that a
province, city or municipality has control or supervision
thereof. This, we made clear in City of Manila vs. Teotico,
et al9 :
At any rate, under Article 2189 of the Civil Code, it is not
necessary for the liability therein established to attach
that the defective roads or streets belong to the province,
city or municipality from which responsibility is exacted.
What said article requires is that the province, city or
municipality have either "control or supervision" over said
street or road. x x x
Besides, petitioner failed to take note of the other
provisions of Section 149 of the same Code, more
particularly the following:
Section 149. Powers and Duties. – (1) The sangguniang
bayan shall:

(bb) Regulate the drilling and excavation of the ground

for the laying of gas, water, sewer, and other pipes; the
building and repair of tunnels, sewers, drains and other
similar structures; erecting of poles and the use of
crosswalks, curbs and gutters therein, and adopt
measures to ensure public safety against open canals,
manholes, live wires and other similar hazards to life and
property, and provide just compensation or relief for
persons suffering from them;

Clear it is from the above that the Municipality of San

Juan can "regulate" the drilling and excavation of the
ground for the laying of gas, water, sewer, and other
pipes within its territorial jurisdiction.

As pointed by the SC, the term "regulate" found in the

aforequoted provision of Section 149 can only mean that
petitioner municipality exercises the power of control, or,
at the very least, supervision over all excavations for the
laying of gas, water, sewer and other pipes within its
territory.

More so, under paragraph [1][bb] of Section 149, of the

Local Government Code, the phrases "regulate the
drilling and excavation of the ground for the laying of gas,
water, sewer, and other pipes", and "adopt measures to
ensure public safety against open canals, manholes, live
wires and other similar hazards to life and property", are
not modified by the term "municipal road". And
neither can it be fairly inferred from the same provision of
Section 149 that petitioner’s power of regulation vis-à-
vis the activities therein mentioned applies only in cases
where such activities are to be performed
in municipal roads. To our mind, the municipality’s liability
for injuries caused by its failure to regulate the drilling
and excavation of the ground for the laying of gas, water,
sewer, and other pipes, attaches regardless of whether
the drilling or excavation is made on a national or
municipal road, for as long as the same is within its
territorial jurisdiction.
#2 filled up with someone who should belong to the political
party of petitioner Tamayo, and petitioner Navarro indeed
Navarro vs. Court of Appeals
belong to the same political party (REFORMA-LM). Thus,
Facts: the appointment of petitioner Purto J. Navarro to the
Sanggunian Bayan is valid.
On March 25, 1999, Mayor Cesar Calimlim died
which led to a vacancy in the Office of the Mayor so the
then Vice-Mayor Baltazar Aquino succeeded him.
Accordingly, the highest-ranking member of the
Sangguniang Bayan, the one who garnered the highest
number of votes, was elevated to the position of the Vice-
Mayor, pursuant to the Local Government Code. This was
petitioner Danny B. Tamayo who belonged to the
REFORMA-LM political party.

Since a vacancy occurred in the Sangguniang

Bayan by the elevation of petitioner Tamayo to the office
of the Vice-Mayor, Governor Agbayani appointed
petitioner Navarro as Member of the Sangguniang Bayan.
Navarro belonged to the same political party as that of
petitioner Tamayo.

The private respondents sought to nullify the

appointment of petitioner Navarro before the RTC of
Dagupan, but this was denied. Upon appeal, the private
respondents argued before the CA that it was the former
vice-mayor, succeeding to the position of the mayor, who
created the permanent vacancy in the Sanggunian Bayan
because under the law he was also a member of the
Sanggunian. Thus, the appointee must come from said
former vice-mayor's political party, which is the "Lakas-
NUCD-Kampi."

However, petitioners alleged that it was the

elevation of petitioner Tamayo -the highest-ranking
member of the Sanggunian Bayan, to the office of the
Vice-Mayor which resulted in a permanent vacancy in the
Sanggunian Bayan. Pursuant to the LGC, the person to be
appointed to the position vacated by him should come
from the same political party affiliation as that of
petitioner Tamayo (Reforman LM). Hence, the
appointment of petitioner Navarro, who was a member of
REFORMA-LM is valid.

CA ruled in favor of the respondent.

Issue: Should the appointment of petitioner Purto J.

Navarro to the Sanggunian Bayan be declared as null and
void? (NO)

Ruling:

The appointment of Navarro to the Sanggunian

Bayan is valid.

Pursuant to Section 45 (b) of RA 7160, the

person to be appointed to the position vacated should
come from the same political party affiliation as that of
petitioner Tamayo.

What is crucial is the interpretation of Section

45(b) providing that “only the nominee of the political
party under which the Sanggunian member concerned
has been elected and whose elevation to the position next
higher in rank created the last vacancy in the Sanggunian
shall be appointed in the manner hereinabove provided.
The appointee shall come from the political party as that
of the Sanggunian member who caused the vacancy.

The rationale behind the right given to a political

party to nominate a replacement where a permanent
vacancy occurs in the Sanggunian is “to maintain the
party representation as willed by the people in the
election.” With the elevation of petitioner Tamayo, who
belonged to REFORMA-LM, to the position of Vice-Mayor,
a vacancy occurred in the Sanggunian that should be
3. JESUS A. JARIOL, Municipal Mayor of Basilisa,
Surigao del Norte; ROMEO P. ECLEO, Vice Mayor of
Basilisa, Surigao del Norte; ANIANO BUSMEON,
ALBERTO TUBO, JUAN DIGAL, JR., GENEROSO
SAREN, ISIDRO MONESIT and SATURNINO
LANUGON, Sangguniang Bayan Member of Basilisa,
Surigao del Norte, Petitioners, v. THE COMMISSION
ON ELECTIONS, FELIPE A. YCOT and DAISY
LUMAMBAS, Respondents.

This is a special civil action for certiorari under Rule 65 of

the Rules of Court to annul and set aside Resolution No.
2879 of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) of 12
December 1996, which adopted the calendar of activities
for the recall election of the Mayor, Vice Mayor and six (6)
members of Sangguniang Bayan of the Municipality of
Basilisa, Province of Surigao del Norte, and scheduled said
recall election on 25 January 1997.

Petitioners, as the officials sought to be recalled, submit

that 4. The recall election is scheduled on January 25,
1997, within one year immediately preceding a regular
election of barangay officials in May, 1997.

Petitioners contend that under Section 74(b) of RA No.

7160, no recall should take place within one (1) year from
the date of the official's assumption to office or one (1)
year immediately preceding a regular local election.

Per Resolution No. 2880 of 27 December 1996, the

COMELEC stated that the next barangay election would be
on 12 May 1997 hence, no recall election could be done
within one year immediately preceding 12 May 1997. The
recall then in this case falls within the prohibited period.

ISSUE:

WON Commission on Elections committed grave abuse of

discretion in giving due course to the recall petition and in
promulgating Resolution No. 2879.

RULING:

NO. The scheduled barangay election on 12 May 1997 is

not the regular election contemplated in Section 74(b) of
the Local Government Code of 1991 whose conduct is the
basis for computing the one-year prohibited period. As we
held in Paras v. Commission on Elections (supra):

It would, therefore, be in keeping with the intent of the

recall provision of the Code to construe regular local
election as one referring to an election where the office
held by the local elective official sought to be recalled
could be contested and be filled by the electorate.

Hence the holding of the recall election in question can be

validly done at any time before the commencement of the
one (1) year period immediately preceding the next
general election for municipal elective officials in May of
1998.
 4. MAYOR ABELARDO ABUNDO, SR., Petitioner, v. Prior to the finality of the election protest, Abundo did not
COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS and ERNESTO R. serve in the mayors office and, in fact, had no legal right
VEGA,Respondents. to said position. During the pendency of the election
protest, Abundo ceased from exercising power or
G.R. No. 201716
authority. Consequently, the period during which Abundo
TOPIC: TERM LIMITS was not serving as mayor should be considered as a rest
period or break in his service because prior to the
FACTS: judgment in the election protest, it was Abundos
opponent, Torres, who was exercising such powers by
For four (4) successive regular elections, namely, the
virtue of the still then valid proclamation.
2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010 national and local elections,
Petitioner Abelardo Abundo, Sr. (Abundo) vied for the
position of municipal mayor. In both the 2001 and 2007
runs, he emerged and was proclaimed as the winning
mayoralty candidate and accordingly served the
corresponding terms as mayor. In the 2004 electoral
derby, however, the municipal board of canvassers
initially proclaimed as winner one Jose Torres (Torres),
who, in due time, performed the functions of the office of
mayor. Abundo protested Torres election and
proclamation. Abundo was eventually declared the winner
of the 2004 mayoralty electoral contest, paving the way
for his assumption of office starting May 9, 2006 until the
end of the 2004-2007 term on June 30, 2007, or for a
period of a little over one year and one month. Then
came the May 10, 2010 elections where Abundo and
Torres again opposed each other. When Abundo filed his
certificate of candidacy for the mayoralty seat relative to
this electoral contest, Torres sought the formers
disqualification to run.

The RTC declared Abundo as ineligible, under the three-

term limit rule, to run in the 2010 elections for the
position of, and necessarily to sit as, mayor. In its
Resolution, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC)
Second Division affirmed the decision of RTC, which
affirmed by COMELEC en banc.

ISSUE: Whether or not Abundo has consecutively

served for three terms.

HELD: The petition is partly meritorious.

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW: Involuntary Interruption

of Service

The consecutiveness of what otherwise would have been

Abundos three successive, continuous mayorship was
effectively broken during the 2004- 2007 term when he
was initially deprived of title to, and was veritably
disallowed to serve and occupy, an office to which he,
after due proceedings, was eventually declared to have
been the rightful choice of the electorate.

The declaration of being the winner in an election protest

grants the local elected official the right to serve the
unexpired portion of the term. Verily, while he was
declared winner in the protest for the mayoralty seat for
the 2004-2007 term, Abundo’s full term has been
substantially reduced by the actual service rendered by
his opponent (Torres). Hence, there was actual
involuntary interruption in the term of Abundo and he
cannot be considered to have served the full 2004-2007
term.