Villena v.

Secretary of Interior
GR 46570
April 21, 1939
Ponente: Laurel

Facts:
The respondent Secretary of Interior requested the Division of Investigation of the Department of
Justice to conduct an inquiry into petitioner’s actions. The investigation found that petitioner Villena
committed bribery, extortion, malicious abuse of authority and unauthorized practice of law profession.
Thereafter, the respondent Secretary of Interior recommended to the Office of the President the
suspension of Villena. This recommendation was eventually granted. Thus, Villena was suspended from
office. Respondent Secretary of Interior wrote Villena a letter informing the latter the charges and the
designation of Emiliano Anonas as the special investigator. Hence, this instant petition.

Issue:
Whether or not the Secretary of Interior has the power to order investigation and to suspend
Mayor Villena

Held:
Yes. The Secretary of Interior has the power to order investigation and to suspend Mayor Villena.
As to the power to order investigation, it was provided in Section 79 (C) of the Administrative
Code that Department of Interior was given the authority to supervise bureaus and offices under its
jurisdiction. This was interpreted in relation to Section 86 of the same Code which granted the said
Department of executive supervision over administration of provinces, municipalities and other political
subdivisions. This supervision covers the power to order investigation because supervision “implies
authority to inquire into facts and conditions in order to render power real and effective.”
However, unlike this power to order investigation, the power to suspend a mayor was not provided
in any law. There was no express grant of authority to the Secretary of Interior to suspend a Mayor.
Nevertheless, Section 2188 of the Administrative Code granted the provincial governor the power of
suspension. Yet this did not mean that the grant precluded the Secretary of Interior.
The power to suspend may be exercised by the President. It follows that the heads of the
Department under her may also exercise the same, unless the law required the President to act
personally or that situation demanded him so, because the heads of the departments are assistants and
agents of the President. This is under the Doctrine of Qualified Political Agency which provides that “the
acts of the department secretaries, performed and promulgated in the regular course of business, are,
unless disapproved or reprobated by the President, presumptively the acts of the President.”