CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
The President has profound influence derived from the
vast powers conferred on him that enable him to assume
leadership in the conduct of public and governmental
affairs.
 Leadership in the:
o Enforcement of laws
o Conduct of foreign affairs
o Command of the armed forces
o Administration of the government
o Crystallization of public opinion
1935 Constitution: complete assumption of executive
power.
 Villena v. Secretary of Interior, “the President of
the Philippines is the Executive of the
Government of the Philippines.
 Planas v. Gil, “all executive authority is thus
vested in him.”
 Myers v. United States, “the enumeration (of
specific executive powers) ought therefore to be
considered as intended merely to specify the
principal articles implied in the definition of
power, leaving the rest to flow from the general
grant of that power.”
Reconsidered views, stricter interpretation of executive
power:
 Lacson v. Roque and Mondano v. Silvosa, the
President’s power of general supervision over
local governments could be exercised by him
only “as may be provided by law” in accordance
with the constitutional limitation.
 Steel Seizure Case, Justice Black: “I cannot accept
the view that this clause is a grant in bulk of all
conceivable executive power but regard it as
allocation to the presidential office of the
generic powers thereafter stated.”
However in:
 Marcos v. Manglapus, we hold the view that
although the 1987 Constitution imposes
limitations on the exercise of specific powers of
the President, it maintains intact what is
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traditionally considered as within the scope of
‘executive power’. Corollarily, the powers of the
President cannot be said to be limited only to the
specific powers enumerated in the Constitution.
In other words, executive power is more than the
sum of specific powers so enumerated.”
 The President may not amend by Executive
Order the functions of the Commission on Higher
Education without prior legislative authority.
Administrative Code, on the “residual powers” of the
President: “unless Congress provides otherwise, the
President shall exercise such other powers and functions
vested in the President which are provided for under the
laws and which are not specifically enumerated above,
or which are not delegated by the President in
accordance with the law.”
 The Administrative Code of 1987 gives the
President continuing authority to reorganize
and redefine the functions of the Office of the
President – “the President implicitly has the
power to effect less radical or less substantive
changes to the functional and internal structure
of the Office of the President, including the
modification of functions of such executive
agencies as the exigencies of the service may
require.”
E.O. 292, “continuing delegated legislative authority to
reorganize.”
 Section 31 (1) of EO 292 [Reorganization of the
Office of the President Proper]
o By abolishing, consolidating, or merging
units, or by transferring functions from
one unit to another.
 Section 31 (2) and (3) of EO 292 [Reorganization
of the offices outside of the Office of the
President Proper but still within the Office of the
President]
o Limited to merely transferring functions
or agencies from the Office of the
President to Departments or Agencies,
and vice versa.
 Why distinction between the two is important:
o Affects employees’ tenurial security
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o It touches upon the validity of the
reorganization (whether the executive
actions undertaken fall within the
limitations prescribed under EO 292.
On the other hand, certain powers have been
acknowledged as pertaining to the President despite the
absence of express conferments upon him of the same.
Example:
 The authority of the President to conduct peace
negotiations with rebel groups from the general
responsibility to promote public peace.
 The authority to declare a state of rebellion
springs from the Commander-in-Chief powers.
 The authority to choose the individual to whom
immunity would be granted.
The President does not have the power to issue decrees.
 David v. Arroyo, it declared unconstitutional
President Arroyo’s proclamation 1017 which
authorized her to issue decrees, “legislative
power is peculiarly within the province of the
Legislature” and “neither Martial Law nor a state
of rebellion nor a state of emergency can justify
President Arroyo’s exercise of legislative power
by issuing decrees.”
The President is granted Ordinance Powers under
Chapter 2, Book II of Executive Order No. 292
(Administrative Code of 1987) and may issue the
following:
 Executive Orders
 Administrative Orders
 Proclamations
 Memorandum Orders
 Memorandum Circulars
 General or Special Orders
Executive Orders – acts of the President providing for
rules of a general or permanent character in
implementation or execution of constitutional or
statutory powers.
Administrative Orders – acts of the President which
relate to particular aspects of governmental operations
in pursuance of his duties as administrative head.
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Proclamations – acts of the President fixing a date or
declaring a status or condition of public moment or
interest, upon the existence of which the operation of a
specific law or regulation is made to depend, and which
shall have the force of an executive order.
Memorandum Orders – acts of the President on matters
of administrative detail or of subordinate or temporary
interest which only concern a particular officer or office
of the Government.
Memorandum Circulars – acts of the President on
matters relating to internal administration, which the
President desires to bring to the attention of all or some
of the departments, agencies, bureaus or offices of the
Government, for information or compliance.
General or Special Orders – refer to acts and commands
of the President in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief
of the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Specific powers vested in the President by the
Constitution:
 The Appointing Power
o The Removal Power
 The Control Power
 The “Take-Care” Clause
 The Military Power
o Command of the Armed Forces
o Habeas Corpus
o Martial Law
 The Pardoning Power
 The Borrowing Power
 The Diplomatic Power
 The Budgetary Power
 The Informing Power
 Other Powers
o Call the Congress to special sessions
o To approve or veto bills
o To consent the deputization of
government personnel by the COMELEC
o To discipline its deputies
o By delegation, exercise emergency and
tariff powers
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THE APPOINTING POWER
Section 16, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
Power of Appointment – Luego v. Civil Service
Commission, ‘is an essentially discretionary power and
must be performed by the officer in which it is vested
according to is best lights, the only condition being that
the appointee should possess the qualifications required
by law. If he does, then the appointment cannot be
faulted on the ground that there are others better
qualified who should have been preferred.”
Appointment – “The act of designation by the appointing
officer, body or board, to whom that power has been
delegated, of the individual who is to exercise the
functions of a given office.”
 The appointing power may be exercised by the
Legislature and by the Judiciary, as well as the
Constitutional Commissions, over their own
respective personnel.
May be done:
 Verbally
 in writing (usually) through the Commission
o Commission – the written evidence of an
appointment.
Permanent Appointments – those extended to persons
possessing the requisite eligibility and are thus protected
by the constitutional provision on security of tenure.
Temporary or Acting Appointments – are given to
persons without such eligibility; are revocable at will and
without the necessity of just cause or valid investigation;
extended upon the understanding that the appointing
power has not yet decided on a permanent appointee
and that the temporary appointee may be replaced at
any time a final choice have been made; term of office is
not fixed but endures at the pleasure of the appointing
authority.
General v. Uro:
 The power to appoint vested in the President
includes the power to make temporary
appointments unless:
o He is otherwise specifically prohibited by
the Constitution, or by law, or
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o When it is repugnant to the nature of the
office involved.
 The power to issue an acting appointment is
authorized by the Administrative Code of 1987.
 Purpose: to prevent a hiatus in the discharge of
official functions.
 Separation from the service does not import
removal but merely the expiration of his term –
a mode of termination of official relations that
falls outside the coverage of the constitutional
provision on security of tenure since no removal
from office is involved.
 Staggering the term of office
o Purpose:
 Minimize the appointing
authority’s opportunity to
appoint a majority of the
members of a collegial body.
 Ensure the continuity of the
body and its policies.
o Is not a statutory prohibition, direct
or indirect, against the issuance of
an acting appointment.
o It does not negate the authority to
issue acting appointments granted
by the Administrative Code.
 Conditions for the prohibition of issuing an
acting appointment:
o Must be specific
o There must be a clear repugnancy
between the nature of the office and the
temporary appointment.
 Essence of an acting appointment:
o Temporariness
o Revocability at any time by the
appointing authority
 The petitioner in a quo warranto proceeding
who seeks reinstatement to an office, on the
ground of usurpation or illegal deprivation, must
prove his clear right to the office for his suit to
succeed; otherwise his petition must fail.
Designation – the imposition of additional duties, usually
by law, on a person already in public service. It is
different from permanent or temporary appointments.
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
 It does not entail payment of additional benefits
or grant upon the person so designated the right
to claim the salary of the position.
o The legal right of an employee to claim
salary is based on the appointment, not
designation.
 Where a person is merely designated and not
appointed, the implication is that he shall hold
the office only in a temporary capacity and may
be replaced at will by the appointing authority.
In this sense, the designation is considered only
an acting appointment.
 Both temporary appointment and designation
are not subject to confirmation by the
Commission on Appointments.
o Erroneous confirmation will not make
the incumbent a permanent appointee.
Pimentel v. Ermita
 Congress, through a law cannot impose on the
President the obligation to appoint
automatically the undersecretary as temporary
alter ego. An alter ego, whether temporary or
permanent, holds a position of great trust and
confidence. Congress, in the guise of prescribing
qualifications to an office, cannot impose on the
President who /her/ alter ego should be.
 Section 1, Chapter 5. Title I, Book III of EO 292.
o The President may even appoint in an
acting capacity a person not yet in the
government service, as long as the
President deems that person
competent.
 Limitations on the executive power to appoint
are construed strictly against the legislature.
o The scope of the legislature’s
interference in the executive’s power to
appoint is limited to the power to
prescribe the qualifications to an
appointive office.
Six (6) Categories of Officials who are subject to the
Appointing Power of the President:
1. The heads of the executive department
2. Ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls
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3. Officers of the armed forces from the rank of
colonel or naval captain
4. Those other officers whose appointments are
vested in him by the Constitution
5. All other officers of the government whose
appointments are not provided by law
6. Those whom he may be authorized by law to
appoint
 Some officers whom the President is authorized
by law to appoint are the members of the various
statutory administrative agencies.
o Ex.: Officers-in-Charge of the
Autonomous Region of Muslim
Mindanao
Example of appointments without need of confirmation
from the Commission on Appointments:
 Chairman of the Commission on Human Rights
 Ombudsman and his deputies
 Customs Commissioner (Sarmiento v. Mison)
 Chairman of the National Labor Relations
Commission
 Members of the Supreme Court and judges of
lower courts
 Appointment of the Vice-President to the
Cabinet
Sarmiento v. Mison
 The clear and expressed intent of the framers of
the Constitution was to exclude presidential
appointments from confirmation by the
Commission on Appointments, except
appointments to offices expressly mentioned in
the first sentence of Section 16, Article VII.
 The 1987 Constitution deliberately excluded the
position of ‘heads of bureaus’ from
appointments that need the consent of the CA.
Example of appointments which need confirmation from
the Commission on Appointments:
 Sectoral representatives appointed by the
President to the House of Representatives
 Chairmen and Members of the Constitutional
Commissions
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
 Regular members of the Judicial and Bar Council
Officers Lower in Rank – should not be understood as
referring to petty or unimportant officers but those
below the rank of or subordinate to those whom the
power of appointment is vested.
 The Congress may allow the appointments of
officers lower in rank to be made by the
President alone, the courts, and the heads of
departments, agencies, commissions and
boards.
Steps in the Regular Appointing Process:
1. Nomination (made by the President)
2. Confirmation (prerogative of the Commission on
Appointments)
3. Issuance of the Commission (done by the
President)
Steps in the Ad Interim Appointing Processs:
 The appointment comes before the confirmation
(which is made by the CA when it reconvenes)
 The nomination is made during the recess and
becomes effective then to confirmation or
rejection during the next legislative session.
Distinction between REGULAR and AD INTERIM
appoitments:
REGULAR APPOINTMENT
 Appointment is made during legislative
session
 Made only after the nomination is confirmed
by the Commission on Appointments
 Once confirmed by the CA, continues until
the end of the term of the appointee.
AD INTERIM APPOINTMENT
 Appointment is made during recess
 Made before the confirmation of the CA
 Shall cease to be valid if disapproved by the CA
or upon the next adjournment of Congress.
o In the latter case, the appointment is
deemed “by-passed” through inaction,
and so disapproved impliedly by the CA.
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Next Adjournment – refers to the termination of the
next regular or special session of Congress. (Guevera v.
Inocentes)
Matibag v. Benipayo:
 An ad interim appointment is a permanent
appointment because it takes effect
immediately and can no longer be withdrawn by
the President once the appointee has qualified
into office.
 It being subject to the confirmation of the CA
does not alter its permanent character.
 The Constitution itself makes an ad interim
appointment permanent in character by making
it effective until disapproved by the CA or until
the next adjournment of Congress.
 When ad interim appointment lapses by inaction
by the CA, as when it fails or refuses to act on the
same until the next adjournment of Congress, it
would not constitute a term of office.
 The period from the time the ad interim
appointment is made to the time it lapses is
neither a fixed term nor an expired term.
 Purpose: to prevent a hiatus in the discharge of
official duties.
Limitations to the President’s Power of Appointment:
1. May be limited by Congress through its power to
prescribe qualifications for public office.
2. The Judiciary may annul an appointment made
by the President if the appointee has not been
validly confirmed or does not possess the
required qualifications.
Two Special Limitations:
1. Section 14, Article VII – emphasizes the
caretaker capacity of the Acting President, at the
same time allows the elected President to ratify
his appointments by mere inaction during the
specified 90 days.
2. Section 15, Article VII – to prevent use, or abuse,
of the appointing power for the purpose of
enlisting political support in exchange for some
appointive office in the government. This also
prevents “midnight appointments”.
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
a. This does not cover appointments to the
Supreme Court. (De Castro v. JBC)
 Luego v. Civil Service Commission, the Civil
Service Commission is not “empowered to
determine the kind or nature of the appointment
extended by the appointing officer, its authority
being limited to approving or reviewing the
appointment in the light of the requirements of
the Civil Service Law.
 Lacson v. Romero, an appointment is deemed
complete only upon its acceptance. Pending
such acceptance, which is optional to the
appointee, the appointment may still be validly
withdrawn.
o Appointment to a public office cannot
be forced upon any citizen except for
purposes of the defense of the State
under Article II.
“Where there are offices which have to be filled, but the
law does not provide the process for filling them, the
Constitution recognizes the power of the President to fill
the office by appointment. Any limitation or qualification
to the exercise of the President’s appointment power
should be strictly construed and must be clearly stated in
order to be recognized.”
THE REMOVAL POWER
From the express power of appointment, the President
derives the implied power of removal.
 But not all officials appointed by him are also
removable by him. For example:
o Members of the Supreme Court
o Members of the Constitutional
Commissions
o Judges of Inferior Courts
o Ombudsman (but Deputy Ombudsmen
may be removed by the President)
o Elected local officials
The Removal Power may be exercised by the President
only for cause as may be provided by law and in
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accordance with the prescribed administrative
procedure.
 Exception: with respect to the members of the
Cabinet or to other executive officials whose
term of office is determined at the pleasure of
the President.
A removal presupposes a forcible and permanent
separation of the incumbent from office before the
expiration of his term.
THE CONTROL POWER
Section 17, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution (this is a
self-executing provision)
 The President derives his power directly from
the Constitution and not from any implementing
legislation.
“The President shall have control of all the executive
departments, bureaus and offices. He shall ensure that
the laws be faithfully executed.”
Control – “the power of an officer to alter or modify or
nullify or set aside what a subordinate officer had done
in the performance of his duties and to substitute the
judgment of the former for that of the latter.” It is
stronger than supervision.
It includes:
 The authority to order the doing of an act by a
subordinate
 To undo such act
 Assume a power directly vested in him by law
Supervision – “overseeing or the power or authority of
an officer to see that subordinate officers perform their
duties. If the latter fail or neglect to fulfill them, then the
former may take such action or steps as prescribed by
law to make them perform these duties.”
For more distinction between control and supervision,
see Drilon v. Lim.
 Theoretically, the President has full control of all
the members of his Cabinet, since they are
merely is alter ego. He may appoint them as he
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
sees fit, shuffle them at pleasure, and replace
them in his discretion without legal inhibition.
Doctrine of Qualified Political Agency – Villena v.
Secretary of Interior, “without minimizing the
importance of the heads of various departments, their
personality is in reality but the projection of that of the
President.” Accordingly, their acts “performed and
promulgated in the regular course of business, are,
unless disapproved or reprobated by the Chief Executive,
presumptively the acts of the Chief Executive.”
 This doctrine does not apply to acts of cabinet
secretaries done in their capacity as ex officio
board directors of GOCCs of which they became
members not by appointment of the President
but by law.
Trade and Investment Development Corporation of
the Philippines v. Manalang-Demigillo
Doctrine in recognition of the fact that:
 In the Philippines’ presidential form of
government, all executive organizations are
adjuncts of a single Chief Executive;
 The heads of the Executive Departments are
assistants and agents of the Chief Executive;
 That the multiple executive functions of the
President as the Chief Executive are performed
through the Executive Departments.
See also: Araneta v. Gatmaitan:
Doctrine of Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies – a
party aggrieved by an order of an administrative official
should first appeal to the higher administrative authority
before seeking judicial relief. Otherwise, the complaint
will be dismissed for being premature or for having no
cause of action.
 Such appeal would however not be necessary or
required when there exists a special law that
provides for a different mode of appeal.
 “Executive control” is not absolute. It may be
limited by:
o The Constitution
o Law
o Judicial decision
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o Also subject to the rule-making authority
of the Supreme Court
 Lacson-Magallanes Co., Inc. v. Pano /on the issue
of whether or not the administrative decision
could still be appealed to the President/
o “Implicit then is his authority to go over,
confirm, modify or reverse the action
taken by his department secretaries. It
may not be said that the President
cannot rule on the correctness of a
decision of a department secretary.
 The power of control is exercisable by the
President over the acts of his subordinates and
not necessarily over the subordinate himself.
o Ang-Angco v. Castillo “not over the actor
or agent himself of the act.
 De Leon v. Carpio, as a subordinate in this
Department (DoJ), the respondent was bound to
obey the Secretary’s directives, which are
presumptively the acts of the President of the
Philippines.
 Orosa v. Roa, the Department of Justice is not a
quasi-judicial body. Its preliminary investigation
of a case is therefore not a quasi-judicial
proceeding.
THE “TAKE-CARE” CLAUSE
The energy or indifference with which he discharges this
power will determine the measure of his success as Law
Enforcer.
The law he is supposed to enforce includes:
 The Constitution
 Statutes
 Judicial Decisions
 Administrative Rules and Regulations
 Municipal Ordinances
Until and unless a law is declared unconstitutional, the
President has a duty to execute it regardless of his doubts
on its validity.
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
 Biraogo v. The PhilippineTruth Commission of
2010¸ that the authority of the President to
conduct investigation and to create bodies to
execute his power is not explicitly mentioned in
the Constitution or in statutes does not mean he
is bereft of such authority.
1. The Executive is given much leeway in
ensuring that our laws are faithfully
executed.
2. The powers of the President is not
limited to those specified under the
Constitution.
3. This power includes the authority to
create ad hoc committees. This is from
the obvious need to ascertain facts and
determine if laws have been faithfully
executed.
Faithful-execution Clause – Section 17, Article VII of the
1987 Constitution. “Obligation to see to it that laws are
faithfully executed necessitates the corresponding
power in the President to conduct investigations into the
conduct of officials and employees in the executive
department.”
THE MILITARY POWER
Section 18, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
 This section bolsters the principle announced in
Article II, Section 3: ‘Civilian authority is, at all
times, supreme over the military.’
 It is important that the military be subordinated
to the President so he can keep it in check
whenever it is tempted to impose its will upon
the government.
 Although the President is made the Commander-
in-Chief of all the armed forces, he will be so only
if there are armed forces to command. These
armed forces will be raised by the Congress in
the exercise of its general legislative power,
particularly Section 4, Article II of the
Constitution.
 The Military Power enables the President to:
1. Command all the Armed Forces of the
Philippines
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2. Suspend the privilege of the writ of
habeas corpus
3. Declare a state of martial law
COMMAND OF THE ARMED FORCES
The “power of the sword” makes the President the most
important figure in the country in times of war or other
similar emergency.
 It is because the sword must be wielded with
courage and resolution that the President is
given vast powers in the making and carrying out
of military decisions.
The President can:
 Determine what degree of force a particular
crisis demands;
 Organize courts martial for the discipline of the
members of the armed forces violating military
law;
 Create military commissions for the punishment
of war criminals; and
 Call out the armed forces to prevent or suppress
lawless violence, invasion, or rebellion.
Courts Martial – Ruffy v. Chief of Staff, agencies of
executive character which may be convened by the
President independently of legislation and by virtue only
of his constitutional function as commander-in-chief.
Unlike courts of law, they are not a portion of the
Judiciary.
 Garcia v. Executive Secretary, the “general court
martial is a court within the strictest sense of the
word and acts as a criminal court.
 “The power to confirm a sentence of the
President, as Commander-in-Chief, includes the
power to approve or disapprove the entire or any
part of the sentence given by the court martial.”
 Olaguer v. Military Commission No. 34, “Since we
are not enemy-occupied territory nor are we
under a military government and even on the
premise that martial law continues in force, the
military tribunals cannot try and exercise
jurisdiction over civilians for civil offenses
committed by them which are properly
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
cognizable by the civil courts that have remained
open and have been regularly functioning.”
o “A Court Martial is not yet an
independent instrument of justice but
remains to a significant degree a
specialized part of the over-all
mechanism by which military discipline
is preserved and that ex-servicemen
should be given ‘the benefits of a civilian
court trial when they are actually
civilians.’”
Calling-Out Power – involves “ordinary police action,”
which would ordinarily not entitle him to “invoke a
greater power when he wishes to act under a lesser
power.” It is only the President who is authorized to
exercise the calling-out power.
David v. Arroyo:
 “While the President alone can declare a state of
national emergency, however, without
legislation, he has no power to take over
privately-owned public utility or business
affected with public interest. In short, the
President has no absolute authority to exercise
all the powers of the State under Section 17,
Article VII in the absence of an emergency
powers act passed by Congress.”
 The President cannot call the military to enforce
or implement certain laws, such as:
o Customs laws
o Laws governing family and property
relations
o Laws on obligations and contracts and
the like
 He can only order the military to enforce laws
pertinent to its duty to suppress lawless
violence.
 “The President’s power to conduct peace
negotiations is implicitly included in her powers
as Chief Executive and Commander-in-Chief. As
the Chief Executive, the President has the
general responsibility to promote public peace,
and as Commander-in-Chief, she has more
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specific duty to prevent and suppress rebellion
and lawless violence.”
 The President, as Commander-in-Chief, may
validly prohibit a military officer from testifying
in a legislative inquiry, without prejudice though
to the right of the legislative body seeking such
testimony to obtain judicial relief to compel the
attendance of the officer.
o Such judicial action should be directed at
the heads of the executive branch or the
armed forces, the persons who wield
authority and control over the actions of
the officers concerned.
 Rodriguez v. Macapagal-Arroyo, citing Gonzales
v. Abaya, the President, as Commander-in-Chief,
can be held responsible or accountable for
extrajudicial killings and enforced
disappearances in the context amparo
proceedings.
Doctrine of Command Responsibility:
Requisites:
a) The existence of a superior-subordinate
relationship between the accused as superior
and the perpetrator of the crime as his
subordinate;
b) The superior knew or had reason to know that
the crime was about to be or had been
committed; and
c) The superior failed to take the necessary and
reasonable measures to prevent the criminal
acts or punish the perpetrators thereof.
HABEAS CORPUS
The President is entrusted the power to suspend the
privilege of the writ of habeas corpus. This power is with
limitations and may be revoked by the Congress or the
Supreme Court in proper cases.
 Section 18, Article VII must be read with Section
15, Article VIII of the 1987 Constitution.
Writ of Habeas Corpus – “is a writ directed to the person
detaining another, commanding him to produce the
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
body of the prisoner at a designated time and place, with
the day and cause of his caption and detention, to do, to
submit to, and receive whatever the court or judge
awarding the writ shall consider in his behalf. It is a high
prerogative common law writ of ancient origin the great
object of which is the liberation of those who may be in
prison without sufficient cause.”
 What is permitted to be suspended by the
President is not the writ itself but its privilege.
 It may not be availed of by police officers under
investigation and subjected to “restrictive
custody order” issued by their superiors, limiting
their physical movements and liberty to leave
camps.
Two (2) grounds for the suspension of the privilege of the
writ of habeas corpus:
 Invasion or rebellion
 When the public safety requires it
The Supreme Court has the power to annul the
suspension of the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus
if the same is not based on the two grounds.
 Barcelona v. Baker, the determination by the
President of the Philippines of the existence of
any of the grounds prescribed by the
Constitution for the suspension of the privilege
of the writ of habeas corpus is conclusive upon
the courts.
o Justification: with all the intelligence
sources available to the President as
Commander-in-Chief, he is in a better
position than the Supreme Court to
ascertain the real state of peace and
order in the country.
Montenegro Doctrine – the suspension of the privilege
of the writ of habeas corpus was a political question to
be resolved solely by the President.
Lansang Doctrine (Constitutionalized through Section
18) – the Supreme Court had the power to inquire into
the factual basis of the suspension of the privilege of the
writ of habeas corpus.
TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE
 Under Section 13, Article III, “the right to bail
shall not be impaired even if the privilege of the
writ of habeas corpus is suspended.”
MARTIAL LAW
Martial Law – that law which has application when the
military arm does not supersede civil authority but is
called upon to aid it in the execution of its civil function.
 The declaration of Martial Law has no legal effect
than to warn the citizens “that the military
powers have been called upon by the executive
to assist him in the maintenance of law and order
and that while the emergency lasts, they must,
upon pain of arrest and punishment, not commit
any act which will in any way render difficult the
restoration of order and enforcement of law.”
 The principle still holds good that necessity, and
necessity alone, will justify an infringement
upon private rights of persons and property.
Effects:
 No new powers are given to the Executive
 No extension of arbitrary authority is recognized
 No civil rights of the individuals are suspended
 The relation of the citizens to their State is
unchanged
o Whatever interference there may be
with their personal freedom or property
rights must be justified.
 Commission of acts which in more tranquil times
are not demanded
 Those in authority may control the individual in
his property in ways which they could not legally
do at other times.
Powers which may be exercised by the President during
a valid declaration of Martial Law:
 Arrests and seizures without judicial warrants
 Ban on public assemblies
 Take-over of news media and agencies and press
censorship
 Issuance of Presidential Decrees
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
LIMITATIONS ON THE MILITARY POWERS
Authority of the President as Commander-in-Chief:
1. He may call out the armed forces when it
becomes necessary to prevent or suppress
lawless violence, invasion or rebellion only.
2. The grounds for the suspension of the privilege
of the writ of habeas corpus and the
proclamation of martial law are now limited only
to invasion or rebellion, when the public safety
requires it.
3. The duration of such suspension and
proclamation shall not exceed sixty (60) days,
following which it shall be automatically lifted.
4. Within forty-eight (48) hours after such
suspension or proclamation, the President shall
personally or in writing report his action to the
Congress. If not in session, the Congress must
convene within twenty-four (24) hours without
need of a call.
5. The Congress may then, by majority vote of all its
members voting jointly, revoke his action.
6. The revocation may not be set aside by the
President.
7. By the same vote and in the same manner, the
Congress may, upon initiative of the President,
extend his suspension or proclamation for a
period to be determined by Congress if the
invasion or rebellion shall continue and the
public safety requires the extension.
8. The action of the President and the Congress
shall be subject to review by the Supreme Court
which shall have the authority to determine the
sufficiency of the factual basis of such action.
This matter is no longer a political question and
may be raised by any citizen in an appropriate
proceeding. Moreover, the Supreme Court must
decide the challenge within thirty (30) days from
the day it is filed.
9. Martial law does not automatically suspend the
privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or the
operation of the Constitution. The civil courts
and the legislative bodies shall remain open.
Military courts and agencies are not conferred
jurisdiction over civilians where the civil courts
are functioning.
TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE
10. The suspension of the privilege of the writ of
habeas corpus shall apply only to persons facing
charges of rebellion or offenses inherent in or
directly connected with invasion.
Under the 1987 Constitution, the President and the
Congress act in tandem in exercising the power to
proclaim martial law or suspend the privilege of the writ
of habeas corpus.
 Although the Supreme Court has the power to
review the sufficiency of the factual basis of the
proclamation and suspension, it is implicit that
the Court must allow the Congress to exercise its
own review powers, which is automatic rather
than initiated.
o Only when Congress defaults in its
express duty to defend the Constitution
through such review should the
Supreme Court step in as its final
rampart.
 The constitutional validity of the declaration or
proclamation is first a political question in the
hands of Congress before it becomes a
justiciable one in the hands of the SC.
THE PARDONING POWER
Section 19, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
Executive clemency is granted for the purpose of
relieving the harshness of the law or correcting mistakes
in the administration of justice.
 Under the Revised Penal Code, the judge may, in
his decision, make a recommendation for the
pardon of the convict if warranted by the
circumstances.
 The exercise of the pardoning power is
discretionary in the President and may not be
controlled by the Legislature or reversed by the
courts, save only when it contravenes
limitations.
Pardon – is an act of grace which exempts the individual
on whom it is bestowed from the punishment which the
law inflicts for the crime he has committed.
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
o Commutation – is a reduction or mitigation of
the penalty, e.g., when the death sentence is
reduced to life imprisonment.
Reprieve – merely a postponement of a sentence to a
date certain, or a stay of execution. It may be ordered to
enable the government to secure additional evidence to
ascertain the guilt of the convict or, in the case of
execution of the death sentence upon a pregnant
woman, to prevent the killing of her unborn child.
Constitutional Limitations on the Pardoning Power:
1. Pardon cannot be granted in cases of
impeachment.
o An impeachment proceeding is not a judicial,
much less a criminal, prosecution and does
not essentially come under the pardoning
power. However, the party convicted in an
impeachment proceeding is subject to
prosecution, trial and punishment in an
ordinary criminal action and in this case can
be extended a pardon.
2. No pardon can be granted for the violation of any
election law, rule or regulation without the
favorable recommendation of the COMELEC.
o Not every offense committed on election
day is to be considered an election offense.
3. Pardon can be granted only after conviction by
final judgment.
o People v. Salle, a conditional pardon
extended on the prisoner while his appeal
was still pending before the SC was invalid.
Additional limitations:
 A pardon cannot be extended to a person
convicted of legislative contempt or of civil
contempt.
 Pardon cannot be extended for the purpose of
absolving the pardonee of civil liability, including
judicial costs.
 Pardon will not restore offices forfeited.
Kinds of Pardon:
2. Plenary or Partial – one under which the convict
1. Absolute or Conditional – one extended without
strings attached.
TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE
 Conditional: the offender has the right to
reject it.
o The condition of the pardon shall be
co-extensive with the penalty
remitted unless otherwise indicated.
o If a violation takes place before the
expiration of the remitted penalty,
the pardon is deemed invalidated
and the pardonee may either (1) be
recommitted by the President under
the Administrative Code or (2)
prosecuted for violation of
conditional pardon under Article
159 of the RPC.
o In the latter, the penalty of prision
correctional in its minimum period
shall be imposed upon the convict,
except when the penalty remitted is
higher than six (6) years, in which
event he shall serve the unexpired
portion of his sentence.
o Culanag v. Director of Prisons, that
these criminal and administrative
remedies are not mutually exclusive
and may be successively availed by
the President.
o Espuelas v. Provincial Warden of
Bohol, “mere commission, not
necessarily conviction by the court,
of any other crime, is enough in
order that the petitioner may be
deemed to have violated the
condition of his parole or pardon.
o Determination of such condition
rests exclusively in the sound
judgment of the Chief Executive.
 Absolute: the pardonee has no option, and
must accept it whether he likes it or not. It is
similar to commutation, which is also not
subject to acceptance by the offender.
is required to comply with certain requirements.
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
 Plenary pardon extinguishes all the penalties
imposed upon the offender, including
accessory disabilities.
 A partial pardon does not.
A convict who has already served his prison term may still
be extended a pardon for the purpose of relieving him of
whatever accessory liabilities have attached to his
offense.
Effects of Pardon:
 To restore not only the offender’s liberty but also
his civil and political rights.
Monsanto v. Factoran:
 Pardon cannot mask the acts constituting the
crime.
 Pardon granted after conviction frees the
individual from all the penalties and legal
disabilities and restores him to all his civil rights.
But unless expressly grounded on the person’s
innocence (which is rare), it cannot bring back
lost reputation for honesty, integrity and fair
dealing.
 We are in full agreement with the commonly-
held opinion that pardon does not ipso facto
restore a convicted felon to public office
necessarily relinquished or forfeited by reason of
the conviction although such pardon
undoubtedly restores his eligibility for
appointment to that office.
Garcia v. Chairman, Commission on Audit:
 If the pardon is based on the innocence of the
individual, it affirms this innocence and makes
him a new man and as innocent, as if he had not
been found guilty of the offense charged.
 When a person is given pardon because he did
not truly commit the offense, the pardon
relieves the party from all punitive
consequences of his criminal act, thereby
restoring to him his clean name, good reputation
and unstained character prior to the finding of
guilt.
 Petitioner’s automatic reinstatement to the
government service entitles him to back wages.
TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE
The right to back wages is afforded to those who
have been illegally dismissed and were thus
ordered reinstated or to those otherwise
acquitted of the charges against them.
While a pardon will not relieve the pardonee of the civil
liability or such other claims as may pertain to private
litigants, it will, however, have the effect of remitting
fines and forfeitures which otherwise will inure to the
interests of the government.
Parole – only a release of the convict from
imprisonment, but not a restoration of his liberty. The
parolee is still in the custody of the law although no
longer under confinement. This is executive;
presupposes the prior service of part of the sentence.
Probation – is judicial; may be granted before actual
service of sentence.
AMNESTY
 The Constitution itself provides that it can be
granted by the President only with the
concurrence of the majority of all members
Congress.
 It requires a previous admission of guilt since a
person would not need the benefit of amnesty
unless he were guilty of the offense covered by
the proclamation.
Amnesty v. Pardon:
1. Amnesty is usually addressed to crimes against
the sovereignty of the State, to political offenses,
forgiveness being deemed more expedient for
the public welfare than prosecution and
punishment; Pardon condones infractions of the
peace of the State.
2. Amnesty is usually generally addressed to
classes or even communities of persons; Pardon
is usually addressed to an individual.
3. In Amnesty, there may or may not be distinct
acts or acceptance, so that if other rights are
dependent upon it and are asserted, there is
affirmative evidence of acceptance; in Pardon,
there must be distinct acts of acceptance.
4. Pardon does not require the concurrence of the
Congress; Amnesty requires such concurrence.
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE

5. Pardon is a private act of the President which  Conclude treaties except in conformity with
must be pleaded and proved by the person Section 21, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution.
pardoned because the courts do not take judicial
Executive Agreement – is a treaty within the meaning of
notice of it; Amnesty is a public act of which the
that word in international law and constitutes
courts take judicial notice.
enforceable domestic law. Unlike a treaty though, an
6. Pardon looks forward and relieves the offender
executive agreement (1) does not require legislative
from the consequences of an offense of which he
concurrence, (2) is usually less formal and (3) deals with
has been convicted; while Amnesty looks
narrower range of subjects.
backward and abolishes and puts into oblivion
the offense itself; it so overlooks and obliterates  All that would be required for its efficacy would
the offense with which he is charged that the be:
person released by amnesty stands before the o the agreement must be between states
law precisely as though he had committed no o it must be written
offense. o must be governed by international law

Bayan Muna v. Romulo:

THE BORROWING POWER
Section 20, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
 Supreme Court: “the fact that this power is
subject to the concurrence of another entity
does not make it any less executive.”
 The fact that the President has to secure the
prior concurrence of the Monetary Board, which
shall submit to the Congress a complete report
of its decision before contracting or
guaranteeing foreign loans, does not diminish
the executive nature of the power.
THE DIPLOMATIC POWER
Section 21, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
As head of State, the President is supposed to be the
spokesman of the nation in external affairs. He may:
 Deal with foreign states and governments
 Extend or withhold recognition
 Maintain diplomatic relations
 Enter into treaties
 Transact the business of foreign relations
The President of the Philippines is empowered to:
 Appoint ambassadors
 Other public ministers
 Consuls
 The terms “exchange of notes” and “executive
agreements” have been used interchangeably.
 Exchange of Notes – is considered a form of
executive agreement that becomes binding
through executive action.
 Executive agreements concluded by the
President ‘sometimes take the form of exchange
of notes and at other times that of more formal
documents denominated ‘agreements’ or
‘protocols.’”
 Under International Law, there is no difference
between treaties and executive agreements in
terms of their binding effects on the contracting
states concerned, as long as the negotiating
functionaries have remained within their
powers.
 Neither on the domestic sphere, can one be valid
if it violates the Constitution.
 However, a treaty has greater ‘dignity’ than an
executive agreement, because its constitutional
efficacy is beyond doubt.
 A treaty has the authority of (1) the President, (2)
the Senate, and (3) the people.
 A ratified treaty, unlike an executive agreement,
takes precedence over any prior statutory
enactment.
 “Treatises and international agreements actually
have a limiting effect on the otherwise
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT
encompassing and absolute nature of
sovereignty.”
o Almost every time a state enters into an
international agreement, it voluntarily
sheds part of its sovereignty.
o The Constitution did not envision a
reclusive Philippines isolated from the
rest of the world.
o The usual underlying consideration in
this partial surrender may be the
greater benefits derived from a pact or a
reciprocal undertaking of one
contracting party to grant the same
privileges or immunities to the other.
An executive agreement cannot be used to amend a duly
ratified and existing treaty.
 Pimentel v. Executive Secretary, the power to
ratify is vested in the President, subject to the
concurrence of Congress. The role of the Senate,
however, is limited only to giving or withholding
its consent, or concurrence, to the ratification.
o It is within the authority of the President
to refuse to submit a treaty to the
Senate or, having secured its consent for
its ratification, refuse to ratify it.
The treaty-making power is exclusive to the President.
Congress, while possessing vast legislative powers, may
not interfere in the field of treaty negotiations.
 Section 21, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
pertains only to the validity of the treaty under
consideration, not the conduct of negotiations
attendant to its conclusion.
Treaties and other international agreements concluded
by the President are also subject to check by the
Supreme Court, which has the power to declare them
unconstitutional.
THE BUDGETARY POWER
Section 22, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE
“In the Chief Executive dwell the powers to run the
government. Placed upon him is the power to
recommend the budget necessary for the operation of
the Government, which implies that he has the necessary
authority to evaluate and determine the structure that
each government agency in the executive department
would need to operate in the most economical and
efficient manner.
 The Congress may not increase the
appropriations recommended by the President
for the operation of the Government as specified
in the budget.
THE INFORMING POWER
Section 23, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution
The first sentence of this provision does not as a rule
impose a compellable duty to the President.
 In his discretion, he may or may not give
information to the legislature, although he will
usually choose to do so for practical reasons:
o He will want to maintain the good will of
the Congress and so will not deny its
request for information if its release will
not prejudice the public interest.
o The requested information may be
needed as the basis of the legislation he
is recommending and he knows that
lacking such basis the legislature would
be justified in not acting on his
proposals.
The President usually discharges the informing power
through what is known as the state-of-the-nation
address, which is delivered at the opening of the regular
session of the legislature.
 He may also appear before it at any other time
for the same purpose.
OTHER POWERS
 Call the Congress to special session
 To approve or veto bills
 CHAPTER 11: POWERS OF THE PRESIDENT TRANSCRIBED BY BEA DOMINIQUE ABE

 To consent to the deputization of government

personnel by the Commission on Elections
 To discipline its deputies
 And by delegation, exercise emergency and tariff
powers

RESUME

“The President is not a Gulliver immobilized by ten

thousand tiny cords, nor even a Prometheus chained to
a rock of frustration. He is, rather, a kind of magnificent
lion who can roam widely and do great deeds so long as
he does not try to break loose from his broad
reservation. Our pluralistic system of restraints is
designed to keep him from going out of bounds, not to
paralyze him in the field that has been reserved for his
use. He will feel few checks upon his power if he uses that
power as he should. This may well be the final definition
of the strong and successful President: the one who
knows just as far as he can go in the direction he wants
to go. If he cannot judge the limits of his power, he
cannot call upon its strength. If he cannot sense the
possible, he will exhaust himself attempting the
impossible. The power of the President moves as a
mighty host only with the grain of morality and liberty.”
– Prof. Clinton Rossiter