Tolentino vs COMELEC

Tuesday, 27 August 2019 7:15 PM

Doctrine of FAIR and Proper Submission

FACTS
- 1971 Coonstitutional Convention passed Organic Resolution No. 1
- Organic Resolution No. 1 - lowerin the voting age from 21 to 18; "without prejudice to other
amendments that will be proposed in the future by the 1971 Constitutional Convention"

- Purpose; the sole purpose of the proposed amendment us ti enable the eighteen year olds to
take part in the election for the ratification of the constiution to be drafted by the Convention.

Petitioners' argument
- Cannot be presented to the people for ratification separately from each and all the other
amendments to be drafted and proposed by the Convention.

ISSUE

- Is there any limitation or condition in Section 1 of Article XV if the Constition which is violated

RULING
- All the amendments to be proposed by the same Convention must be submitted to the people
in a single "election" or plebiscite
- "Such amendments shall be valid as part of this Constitution when approved by a majority of
the votes cast at an election which the amendments are submitted to the people for their
ratification.
- Standard of fair and proper Submission
○ Wisdom and Appropriateness of this provision
▪ In order that a plebiscite for the ratification of an amendment to the Constitution
may be validly held, it must provide the voter not only suffiecent time but ample
basis for an intelligent appraisal of the nature of the amendment per se as well as
its relation to the
- No one knows what changes in the fundamental principles of the Constitution the convention
will be minded to approve. To be more specific, we do not have any means of foreseeing
whether the right to vote would be of any significant value at all. Who can say whether or not
later on the Convention may decide to provide for varying types of voters for each level of the
political units it may divide the country into. The root of the diffficulty in other words, lies in
that the Convention is precisely on the verge of introducing substantial changes, if not radical
ones, in almost every part adnd aspect of the existing social and political order enshrined in
the present Constitution

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