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Jose A. Angara, Petitioner, vs. The Electoral
Jose A. Angara, Petitioner, vs. The Electoral
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ID.
JUDICIARY
THE
ONLY
CONSTITUTIONAL
ARBITER
TO
ALLOCATE
CONSTITUTIONAL BOUNDARIES.But in the main,
the Constitution has blocked out with deft strokes and in
bold lines, allotment of power to the executive, the
legislative and the judicial departments of the
government. The overlapping and interlacing of functions
and duties between the several departments, however,
sometimes makes it hard to say just where the one leaves
off and the other begins. In times of social disquietude or
political excitement, the great landmarks of the
Constitution are apt to be forgotten or marred, if not
entirely obliterated. In cases of conflict, the judicial
department is the only constitutional organ which can be
called upon to determine the proper allocation of powers
between the several departments and among the integral
or constituent units thereof.
4. ID. ID. ID. ID. MODERATING POWER OF THE
JUDICIARY is GRANTED, IF NOT EXPRESSLY, BY
CLEAR IMPLICATION.As any human production, our
Constitution is of course lacking perfection and
perfectibility, but as much as it was within the power of
our people, acting through their delegates to so provide,
that instrument which is the expression of their
sovereignty however limited, has established a republican
government intended to operate and function as a
harmonious whole, under a system of checks and balances,
and subject to specific limitations and restrictions
provided in the said instrument. The Constitution sets
forth in no uncertain language the restrictions and
limitations upon governmental powers and agencies. If
these restrictions and limitations are transcended, it
would be inconceivable if the Constitution had not
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invested
by the
of the
"inferior
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for the petitioner has pointed out, the issue hinges on the
interpretation of section 4 of Article VI of the Constitution
which provides:
"SEC. 4. There shall be an Electoral Commission composed of
three Justices of the Supreme Court designated by the Chief
Justice, and of six Members chosen by the National Assembly,
three of whom shall be nominated by the party having the largest
number of votes, and three by the party having the second largest
number of votes therein. The senior Justice in the Commission
shall be its Chairman. The Electoral Commission shall be the sole
judge of all contests relating to the election, returns and
qualifications of the members of the National Assembly." It is
imperative, therefore, that we delve into the origin and history of
this constitutional provision and inquire into the intention of its
framers and the people who adopted it so that we may properly
appreciate its full meaning, import and significance.
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they heard the parties and their witnesses and other evidence,
and made a report of all the evidence, together with their opinion
thereupon, in the form of resolutions, which were considered and
agreed or disagreed to by the house. The other mode of proceeding
was by a hearing at the bar of the house itself. When this court
was adopted, the case was heard and decided by the house, in
substantially the same manner as by a committee. The committee
of privileges and elections although a select committee was
usually what is called an open one that is to say, in order to
constitute the committee, a quorum of the members named was
required to be present, but all the members of the house were at
liberty to attend the committee and vote if they pleased.
"154. With the growth of political parties in parliament
questions relating to the right of membership gradually assumed
a political character so that for many years previous to the year
1770, controverted elections had been tried and determined by the
house of commons, as mere party questions, upon which the
strength of contending factions might be tested. Thus, for
example, in 1741, Sir Robert Walpole, after repeated attacks upon
his government, resigned his office in consequence of an adverse
vote upon the Chippenham election. Mr. Hatsell remarks, of the
trial of election cases, as conducted under this system, that 'Every
principle of decency and justice were notoriously and openly
prostituted, from whence the younger part of the house were
insensibly, but too successfully, induced to adopt the same
licentious conduct in more serious matters, and in questions of
higher importance to the public welfare.' Mr. George Grenville, a
distinguished member of the house of commons, undertook to
propose a remedy for the evil, and, on the 7th of March, 1770,
obtained the unanimous leave of the house to bring in a bill, 'to
regulate the trial of controverted elections, or returns of members
to serve in parliament.' In his speech to explain his plan, on the
motion for leave, Mr. Grenville alluded to the existing practice in
the following
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ed., 177 Missouri vs. Illinois, 200 U. S., 496 50 Law. ed.,
572.)
It has been correctly stated that the government
established by the Constitution follows fundamentally the
theory of the separation of powers into legislative,
executive, and judicial. Legislative power is vested in the
National Assembly. (Article VI, sec. 1.) In the absence of
any clear constitutional provision to the contrary, the
power to regulate the time in which notice of a contested
election may be given, must be deemed to be included in
the grant of legislative power to the National Assembly.
The Constitution of the United States contains a
provision similar to that found in Article VI, section 4, of
the Constitution of the Philippines. Article I, section 5, of
the Constitution of the United States provides that each
house of the Congress shall be the judge of the elections,
returns, and qualifications of its own members.
Notwithstanding this provision, the Congress has assumed
the power to regulate the time in which notice of a
contested election may be given. Thus section 201, Title 2,
of the United States Code Annotated prescribes:
"Whenever any person intends to contest an election of any
Member of the House of Representatives of the United States, he
shall, within thirty days after the result of such election shall
have been determined by the officer or board of canvassers
authorized by law to determine the same, * give notice, in writing,
to the Member whose seat he designs to contest, of his intention
to contest the same, and, in such notice, shall specify particularly
the grounds upon which he relies in the contest." (R. S., par. 105.)
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