Canlas v Republic

FACTS:
ISSUE: Whether or not Manila Pencil
Corporation as a successor of the Philippine
Consolidated Freight Lines, be exempted in
the payment of income tax.
Held: No
ARTICLE XVIII. SALES AND SERVICES
WITHIN THE BASES
1. It is mutually agreed that the United States
shall have the right to establish on
bases, free of all licenses; fees; sales, excise
or OTHER TAXES, or imposts; Government
agencies, including concessions, such as
sales commissaries and posts exchanges,
messes and social clubs, for the exclusive use
of the United States military forces and
authorized civilian personnel and their
families. The merchandise or services sold
or dispensed by such agencies shall be free
of all taxes, duties and inspection by the
Philippine authorities. . . .
While it may be argued that a tax on the income
derived from the operation of a concession falls under
the term "other taxes" included in the enumeration of
the imposts from which a Government agency or
private concessioner is exempted, yet what is being
exempted from the payment is the establishment
of the agency or concession designed for the
exclusive use of the U.S. military forces and
authorized civil personnel and their families.
Taking into account the sentence following the
enumeration which specifies the "merchandise or
services sold or dispensed by such agencies" to be
free from taxes or duties, the privilege is intended
merely to be confined to the latter and to no other.

Secretary of Finance v Ilarde

FACTS: Respondent Cabaluna was the
Regional Director of the Dept. of Finance in
Iloilo City. He co-owns with his wife several
real properties located in Iloilo city. After his
retirement, there are tax delinquencies on
his properties. He paid the amount, however,
protesting that the penalties imposed to him
are in excess than that provided by law. He
filed a suit before the RTC which found that
Section 4 of Joint Assessment Regulation No.

1-85 and Local Treasury Regulation No. 2-85

by the respondent is null and void, declaring
that the penalty to be imposed for
delinquency of real taxes payment should be
2% on the amount of delinquent tax for each
month of delinquency, until it is paid, but not
exceeding 24% of the delinquent tax as
provided for in Section 66 of P.D. 464, the
Real Property Tax Code. Now the Secretary of
Finance petitions to reverse decision
rendered by respondent Judge Ilarde of RTC,
contending that the Regulation is contrary to
Section 66 of P.D. 464
ISSUE: Whether or not the impugned
Regulation is contrary to the provision of
Section 66 of P.D. 464
HELD: The Regulation No. 1-85 and No. 2-85
is contrary to Section 66 of P.D. 464. In using
the maxim Ubi lex non distinguit nec nos
distinguere debemus or when the law does
not distinguish, we must not distinguish,
P.D. 464 makes no distinction as to whether
it is simple delinquency or other forms
thereof. P.D 464 or the Real Property Tax
Code, covers all real property titled to
individuals who become delinquents in
paying real estate tax.

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MTRCB v ABS-CBN
FACTS: ABS-CBN aired Prosti-tuition which
is an episode of the TV Program The Inside
Story produced and hosted by Loren
Legarda. Said episode showed female
students who were moonlighting as
prostitutes as means to pay their tuition fee.
MTRCB Legal Counsel initiated a formal
complaint alleging that ABS-CBN exhibited
the TV program without the approval of
MTRCB, thus, violating specific MTRCB Rules
& Regulations. In response, ABC-CBN
explained that The Inside Story is a public
affairs program, news, documentary, and
socio-political editorial, and as such, it is
protected by the Constitutional provision on
freedom of expression and the press, and not

covered by the power and authority of

MTRCB.

Peace is within the purview of Section 54,

being included in the term judge

MTRCB contends that the jurisdiction of

MTRCB covers all TV programs, emphasizing
the word all in Section 3(b) of P.D. 1986.
Such law gave MTRCB the power to
screen,review, and examine all TV Programs,
and since The Inside Story is a TV program, it
is well within the jurisdiction of MTRCB.

Defendant claims that the words justice of

peace was omitted, revealing the intention
of the legislature to excluse jsitices of peace
from its operation.

ABS-CBN contends that The Inside Story is a

newsreel.

HELD: Justice of Peace is included in the

coverage of Section 54 of the Revised
Election Code. Applying the Casus Omisus
rule, a person, object, or thing omitted from
an enumeration must have been omitted
intentionally. The maxim can apply only if
and when the omission has been clearly
established. Substitution of terms is not
omission. The term judge includes all
officers appointed to decide litigated
questions while acting in that capacity,
including justice of peace. The intention of
the legislature did not excluse justice of
peace from said Section as there is no
necessity to mention justice of peace in the
enumeration since it has availed itself of the
broader term judge

ISSUE: Whether or not MTRBC has the power

to review the TV program The Inside Story
HELD: Yes, MTRCB has the power to review
the TV program The Inside Story. Applying
the maxim Ubi lex non distinguit nec nos
distinguere debemos, where the law does not
make any exception, the court may not
exempt something therefrom, unless there is
a compelling reason apparent in the law to
justify it.
The word all in said Presidential Decree
covers all TC Programs whether religious,
public affairs, news, documentary, etc. The
principle assumes that the legislature made
no qualification in the use of general word or
expression. The Inside Story is a TV program,
which means that it is within the jurisdiction
of MTRBC.

People v Manantan
FACTS: Guillermo Manantan was charged wth
a violation of Section 54 of the Revised
Election Code. Under Section 54, no justice,
judge, fiscal, treasurer, or assessor of any
province shall aid any candidate, or exert
any influence in any manner in an election or
take part therein, except to vote, if entitled
thereto, or to preserve public peace, if he is a
peace officer.
However, Manantan claims that as Justice of
Peace, he is not one of the officers
enumerated in said Section. The lower court
denied the motion holding that a justice of

ISSUE: Whether or not the Justice of Peace

was excluded from the coverage of Section
54 of the Revised Election Code

Florentino v PNB - Doctrine of Last

Antecedent
FACTS: Florentino is indebted to PNB. Said
loan is secured by a mortgage of real
properties. Florentino.
ISSUE: Whether or not PNB can be compelled
to accept the backpay certificate of
Florentino issued to him by the government,
to pay an indebtedness to PNB?
HELD: Yes, PNB can be compelled to accept
backpay certificate. Section 2 of Republic Act
304 reads as obligations subsisting at the
time of approval of this amendatory act for
which the applicant may directly be liable to
the government or to any of its branches or
instrumentalities, or the corporations owned
or controlled by the government, or to any
citizen of the Philippines, or to any
association or corporation organized under
the laws of the Philippines, who may be
willing to accept the same for such

settlement, the court held that the

qualifying clause refers ONLY to the
immediate antecedent that is any citizen of
the Philippines or any association or
corporation organized under the laws of the
Philippines.

Mapa v Arroyo
ISSUE: Does Clause 20 of said contract
include P.D. 957, making the cancellation of
the contracts of sale incorrect?
HELD: No, Clause 20 of said contract DOES
NOT include P.D. 957. Labrador has the right
to cancel the contracts of sale due to the
lapse of 5 years of default payment from
Mapa.
P.D. 957 does not apply because it was
enacted after the execution of contracts
involved, and other than those provided in
Clause 20, no further written commitment
was made by the developer. The words
which are offered and indicated in the
subdivision or condominium plans refer not
only to other forms of development but

also to faciltiies, improvements, and

infrastractures
The word and is not meant to separate
words, but is a conjunction used to denote a
union.
We further reject petitioner's strained and tenuous
application of the so-called doctrine of last antecedent
in the interpretation of Section 20 and, correlatively, of
Section 21. He would thereby have the enumeration
of "facilities, improvements, infrastructures and other
forms of development" interpreted to mean that the
demonstrative phrase "which are offered and
indicated in the approved subdivision plans, etc." refer
only to "other forms of development" and not to
"facilities, improvements and infrastructures." While
this subserves his purpose, such bifurcation whereby
the supposed adjectival phrase is set apart from the
antecedent words, is illogical and erroneous. The
complete and applicable rule is ad proximum
antecedens fiat relatio nisi impediatur
sentencia. 9Relative words refer to the nearest
antecedent, unless it be prevented by the context. In the
present case, the employment of the word "and"
between "facilities, improvements, infrastructures" and
"other forms of development," far from supporting
petitioner's theory, enervates it instead since it is basic in
legal hermeneutics that "and" is not meant to separate
words but is a conjunction used to denote a joinder or
union.