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CASE DIGESTS
VILLEGAS v. SUBIDO
109 SCRA 1 (1981)
FACTS: Then Metro Manila Mayor Antonio Villegas
approved the appointing of 91 women street
sweepers in the City of Manila. But the appointing
would still have to be approved by the Office of Civil
Service Commission under Commissioner Abelardo
Subido. Subido refused to extend approval to such
appointments on the ground that appointing women to
manual labor is against Memorandum Circular No. 18
series of 1964. Subido pointed out that putting
women workers with men workers outside under the
heat of the sun and placing them under manual labor
exposes them to contempt and ridicule and
constitutes a violation of the traditional dignity and
respect accorded Filipino womanhood. Villegas
however pointed out that the said Memo has already
been set aside by the Office of the President hence
the same is no longer in effect.
ISSUE: Whether or not the appointment of said
women workers should be confirmed by the Civil
Service Commissioner.
RULING: Yes, the appointments must be confirmed.
The basis of Subido was not on any law or rule but
simply on his own concept of what policy to pursue, in
this instance in accordance with his own personal
predilection. Here he appeared to be unalterably
convinced that to allow women laborers to work
outside their offices as street sweepers would run
counter to Filipino tradition. A public official must be
able to point to a particular provision of law or rule
justifying the exercise of a challenged authority.
Nothing is better settled in the law than that a public
official exercises power, not rights. The government
itself is merely an agency through which the will of the
state is expressed and enforced. Its officers therefore
are likewise agents entrusted with the responsibility of
discharging its functions. As such there is no
presumption that they are empowered to act. There
must be a delegation of such authority, either express
or implied. In the absence of a valid grant, they are
devoid of power. It must be conceded that
departmental zeal may not be permitted to outrun the
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authority conferred by statute. Neither the high dignity
of the office nor the righteousness of the motive then
is an acceptable substitute. Otherwise the rule of law
becomes a myth. Such an eventuality, we must take
all pains to avoid.
This trend towards greater recognition of equal rights
for both sexes under the shelter of the equal
protection clause argues most strongly against this
kind of discrimination.
PEOPLE v. LEACHON
G.R. No. 108725
Facts: Petitions to annul the orders of Presiding
Judge Emilio Leachon who dismissed Criminal cases
and denied the MFR.
• Provincial Prosecutor of Occidental Mindoro filed
two separate informations for violation of PD 772
“anti-squatting law” at the RTC.
• Almost a year later, judge dismisses cases for lack
of jurisdiction
• On appeal, CA reverses the order for dismissal
ordering continuation of trial for criminal cases.
 Instead of continuing case, judge dismisses
it again
 Claims that PD 772 was repealed by Article
13 stating that “poor dwellers shall not be
evicted nor their dwelling demolished”
Hence present case where petition states that there
was an abuse of discretion in the dismissal of the
case and declaration that the Anti-Squatting law was
repealed by Constitution.
Art 13: Poor dwellers shall not be evicted
PD 772: Any person with the use of force who
succeeds in occupying the property shall be punished
by imprisonment
Reason of the judge in dismissing the cases was that
the eviction of the accused was not effected in a just
and humane manner as a resettlement area had not
been established.
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• Court holds that there was no error in his
understanding of the provision
• Erred though in predicating the legality of an
eviction on the existence of a resettlement area.
o “just and humane manner” prerequisite
refers to due process.
o Occupant must be notified before actual
eviction.
o Such law affords squatters the opportunity to
present their case before a court.
o Complainants have complied with that.
PD 772 conforms with 1987 constitution in that it
protects the rights of property owner against intrusion.
In the case at hand, Judge did not afford such
opportunity for due process to three accused.
• The argument of unconstitutionality was
never posed either.
HOWEVER: in 97, RA8368 “an act Repealing PD
772” was enacted, which expressed its retroactive
effect to all pending cases.
WHEREFORE: Petition Dismissed
PT&T v. NLRC
G.R. No. 118978
Facts: Seeking relief through the extraordinary writ
of certiorari, petitioner Philippine Telegraph and
Telephone Company (hereafter, PT&T) invokes the
alleged concealment of civil status and defalcation of
company funds as grounds to terminate the services
of an employee. That employee, herein private
respondent Grace de Guzman, contrarily argues that
what really motivated PT&T to terminate her services
was her having contracted marriage during her
employment, which is prohibited by petitioner in its
company policies. She thus claims that she was
discriminated against in gross violation of law, such a
proscription by an employer being outlawed by Article
136 of the Labor Code.
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Issue: WON the policy of not accepting or
considering as disqualified from work any woman
worker who contracts marriage is valid?
Held: Petitioner’s policy of not accepting or
considering as disqualified from work any woman
worker who contracts marriage runs afoul of the test
of, and the right against, discrimination, afforded all
women workers by our labor laws and by no less than
the Constitution.
The Constitution, cognizant of the disparity in rights
between men and women in almost all phases of
social and political life, provides a gamut of protective
provisions. Acknowledged as paramount in the due
process scheme is the constitutional guarantee of
protection to labor and security of tenure. Thus, an
employer is required, as a condition sine qua non
prior to severance of the employment ties of an
individual under his employ, to convincingly establish,
through substantial evidence, the existence of a valid
and just cause in dispensing with the services of such
employee, one’s labor being regarded as
constitutionally protected property. The government,
to repeat, abhors any stipulation or policy in the
nature of that adopted by petitioner PT&T. The Labor
Code states, in no uncertain terms, as follows:
“ART. 136. Stipulation against marriage. – It shall be
unlawful for an employer to require as a condition of
employment or continuation of employment that a
woman shall not get married, or to stipulate expressly
or tacitly that upon getting married, a woman
employee shall be deemed resigned or separated, or
to actually dismiss, discharge, discriminate or
otherwise prejudice a woman employee merely by
reason of marriage.”
In the case at bar, it can easily be seen from the
memorandum sent to private respondent by the
branch supervisor of the company, with the reminder,
that “you’re fully aware that the company is not
accepting married women employee (sic), as it was
verbally instructed to you.” Again, in the termination
notice sent to her by the same branch supervisor,
private respondent was made to understand that her
severance from the service was not only by reason of
her concealment of her married status but, over and
on top of that, was her violation of the company’s
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policy against marriage (“and even told you that
married women employees are not applicable [sic] or
accepted in our company.”
Petitioner’s policy is not only in derogation of the
provisions of Article 136 of the Labor Code on the
right of a woman to be free from any kind of
stipulation against marriage in connection with her
employment, but it likewise assaults good morals and
public policy, tending as it does to deprive a woman of
the freedom to choose her status, a privilege that by
all accounts inheres in the individual as an intangible
and inalienable right. Hence, while it is true that the
parties to a contract may establish any agreements,
terms, and conditions that they may deem convenient,
the same should not be contrary to law, morals, good
customs, public order, or public policy. Carried to its
logical consequences, it may even be said that
petitioner’s policy against legitimate marital bonds
would encourage illicit or common-law relations and
subvert the sacrament of marriage.
PASEI v. DRILON
163 SCRA 386
Labels: Case Digests, Political Law
Facts: Petitioner, Phil association of Service
Exporters, Inc., is engaged principally in the
recruitment of Filipino workers, male and female of
overseas employment. It challenges the constitutional
validity of Dept. Order No. 1 (1998) of DOLE entitled
“Guidelines Governing the Temporary Suspension of
Deployment of Filipino Domestic and Household
Workers.” It claims that such order is a discrimination
against males and females. The Order does not apply
to all Filipino workers but only to domestic helpers
and females with similar skills, and that it is in
violation of the right to travel, it also being an invalid
exercise of the lawmaking power. Further, PASEI
invokes Sec 3 of Art 13 of the Constitution, providing
for worker participation in policy and decision-making
processes affecting their rights and benefits as may
be provided by law. Thereafter the Solicitor General
on behalf of DOLE submitting to the validity of the
challenged guidelines involving the police power of
the State and informed the court that the respondent
have lifted the deployment ban in some states where
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there exists bilateral agreement with the Philippines
and existing mechanism providing for sufficient
safeguards to ensure the welfare and protection of the
Filipino workers.
Issue: Whether or not there has been a valid
classification in the challenged Department Order No.
1.
Held: SC in dismissing the petition ruled that there
has been valid classification, the Filipino female
domestics working abroad were in a class by
themselves, because of the special risk to which their
class was exposed. There is no question that Order
No.1 applies only to female contract workers but it
does not thereby make an undue discrimination
between sexes. It is well settled hat equality before
the law under the constitution does not import a
perfect identity of rights among all men and women. It
admits of classification, provided that:
1. Such classification rests on substantial distinctions
2. That they are germane to the purpose of the law
3. They are not confined to existing conditions
4. They apply equally to al members of the same
class
In the case at bar, the classifications made, rest on
substantial distinctions.
Dept. Order No. 1 does not impair the right to travel.
The consequence of the deployment ban has on the
right to travel does not impair the right, as the right to
travel is subjects among other things, to the
requirements of “public safety” as may be provided by
law. Deployment ban of female domestic helper is a
valid exercise of police power. Police power as been
defined as the state authority to enact legislation that
may interfere with personal liberty or property in order
to promote general welfare. Neither is there merit in
the contention that Department Order No. 1
constitutes an invalid exercise of legislative power as
the labor code vest the DOLE with rule making
powers
VILLAVICENCIO v. LUKBAN
G.R. No. 14639. 39 PHIL 778. March 25, 1919.
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Facts: Justo Lukban, who was then the
Mayor of the City of Manila, ordered the
deportation of 170 prostitutes to Davao. His
reason for doing so was to preserve the morals
of the people of Manila. He claimed that the
prostitutes were sent to Davao, purportedly, to
work for an haciendero Feliciano Ynigo. The
prostitutes were confined in houses from
October 16 to 18 of that year before being
boarded, at the dead of night, in two boats
bound for Davao. The women were under the
assumption that they were being transported to
another police station while Ynigo, the
haciendero from Davao, had no idea that the
women being sent to work for him were actually
prostitutes.
The families of the prostitutes came forward to
file charges against Lukban, Anton Hohmann,
the Chief of Police, and Francisco Sales, the
Governor of Davao. They prayed for a writ of
habeas corpus to be issued against the
respondents to compel them to bring back the
170 women who were deported to Mindanao
against their will.
During the trial, it came out that, indeed, the
women were deported without their consent. In
effect, Lukban forcibly assigned them a new
domicile. Most of all, there was no law or order
authorizing Lukban's deportation of the 170
prostitutes.
Issue: Whether we are a government of laws
or a government of men.
Held: We are clearly a government of laws.
Lukban committed a grave abuse of discretion
by deporting the prostitutes to a new domicile
against their will. There is no law expressly
authorizing his action. On the contrary, there is
a law punishing public officials, not expressly
authorized by law or regulation, who compels
any person to change his residence.
Furthermore, the prostitutes are still, as citizens
of the Philippines, entitled to the same rights, as
stipulated in the Bill of Rights, as every other
citizen. Their choice of profession should not be
a cause for discrimination. It may make some,
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like Lukban, quite uncomfortable but it does not
authorize anyone to compel said prostitutes to
isolate themselves from the rest of the human
race. These women have been deprived of their
liberty by being exiled to Davao without even
being given the opportunity to collect their
belongings or, worse, without even consenting
to being transported to Mindanao. For this,
Lukban et al must be severely punished.
CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY
Biological diversity - or biodiversity - is the term
given to the variety of life on Earth and the
natural patterns it forms. The biodiversity we
see today is the fruit of billions of years of
evolution, shaped by natural processes and,
increasingly, by the influence of humans. It
forms the web of life of which we are an integral
part and upon which we so fully depend.
This diversity is often understood in terms of the
wide variety of plants, animals and
microorganisms. So far, about 1.75 million
species have been identified, mostly small
creatures such as insects. Scientists reckon
that there are actually about 13 million species,
though estimates range from three to 100
million.
Biodiversity also includes genetic differences
within each species - for example, between
varieties of crops and breeds of livestock.
Chromosomes, genes, and DNA-the building
blocks of life-determine the uniqueness of each
individual and each species.
Yet another aspect of biodiversity is the variety
of ecosystems such as those that occur in
deserts, forests, wetlands, mountains, lakes,
rivers, and agricultural landscapes. In each
ecosystem, living creatures, including humans,
form a community, interacting with one another
and with the air, water, and soil around them.
It is the combination of life forms and their
interactions with each other and with the rest of
the environment that has made Earth a uniquely
habitable place for humans. Biodiversity
provides a large number of goods and services
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that sustain our lives.
At the 1992 Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro,
world leaders agreed on a comprehensive
strategy for "sustainable development" --
meeting our needs while ensuring that we leave
a healthy and viable world for future
generations. One of the key agreements
adopted at Rio was the Convention on
Biological Diversity. This pact among the vast
majority of the world's governments sets out
commitments for maintaining the world's
ecological underpinnings as we go about the
business of economic development. The
Convention establishes three main goals: the
conservation of biological diversity, the
sustainable use of its components, and the fair
and equitable sharing of the benefits from the
use of genetic resources.
 to conserve biological diversity
 to use its components in a
sustainable way
 to share fairly and equitably the
benefits arising from the use of
genetic resources.
The CBD was negotiated under the
guidance of the United Nations. It was
signed by more than 150 government
leaders at the Rio Earth Summit (which
official denomination is the 'United
Nations Conference on Environment
and Development'). The Convention is
now one of the most widely ratified
international treaties on environmental
issues, with 194-member countries.
Unlike other international agreements
that set compulsory targets and
obligations, the CBD takes a flexible
approach to implementation. It identifies
general goals and policies, and
countries are free to determine how they
want to implement them.
One of the CBD's greatest achievements so far
has been to generate an enormous amount of
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interest in biodiversity, both in developed and
developing countries. Biodiversity is now seen
as a critically important environment and
development issue.
THE POWER OF PARKS, NATIONAL
GEOGRAPHIC (WHY WE NEED THE WILD)
January 2016
WASHINGTON (Jan. 4, 2016)—To celebrate the
100th anniversary of the founding of the National Park
Service in 2016, National Geographic has launched a
yearlong exploration of the power of parks, across all
its platforms, to help people better understand the
wonders and challenges of parks around the world. A
Web portal, “Explore the Power of Parks,” dedicated
to exploring how to preserve our wild places, will
feature new content throughout the year and include
the latest magazine stories and photos, travel guides
with maps and tips from the experts, videos, photo
galleries, educational resources and the ability to
book authentic and meaningful travel experiences
online. Natgeo.com/parks will aggregate content from
a major series in National Geographic magazine that
kicks off with the January 2016 issue and includes
many digital-only features, videos, news stories and
more.
The magazine series begins with an introduction by
writer David Quammen on why a national park is
more than just a scenic place — it is a nation’s
common ground — and features powerful day-to-night
imagery by photographer Stephen Wilkes. The issue
also includes a feature article by Florence Williams
that looks at how spending time in the natural world
benefits the human brain. Other parks and topics in
the series include Alaska’s Denali National Park,
Seychelles, urban parks, a special single-topic issue
on Yellowstone National Park in May 2016, Virunga
National Park in the Democratic Republic of the
Congo, the Grand Canyon, Cuba’s coral reefs and a
look at the next generation of park keepers.
For almost a century, the National Geographic
Society has been raising the public’s awareness of
the historical and cultural significance — and majestic
beauty — of America’s national parks. The Society
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has consistently featured the national park system

and specific national parks across all of its
publications, television channels and expansive
website. These features provide information and
inspiration to individuals worldwide and educate
Americans about the importance of protecting our
nation’s heritage as represented by the national park
system. National Geographic magazine, the Society’s
flagship publication, devoted its entire July 1979 issue
to U.S. national parks, and in October 2006, the
magazine published a cover story on national parks
throughout the world, including a special piece on the
health of U.S. parks.
“One hundred years ago, the National Geographic
Society helped persuade the U.S. government to
create the National Park Service. Today, parks are
more critical than ever to ensure the health and
sustainability of our planet. They connect us with the
natural world and inspire us all to be better stewards
of our only home. Because we believe in the power of
science, exploration and storytelling to change the
world, we’re harnessing our global content platforms
to focus on the importance of these irreplaceable
places,” says Chris Johns, chief content officer,
National Geographic Society. “We want people to
explore and experience the wonder of these protected
places with us and through us and support our efforts
to understand and preserve them.”

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