8/8/2020 Case Brief: Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities vs Secretary of Education | The Welfare Of the People Shall

People Shall Be The Supreme Law

The Welfare Of the People Shall Be The Supreme

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Case Brief: Philippine Association of Colleges and

Universities vs Secretary of Education
MAY 6, 2018 ⁄ JEFF REY
PHILIPPINE ASSOCIATION OF COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES, ETC., petitioner,
vs.
SECRETARY OF EDUCATION and the BOARD OF TEXTBOOKS, respondents.
G.R. No. L-5279 October 31, 1955

Facts:

Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities assailed the constitutionality of Act No. 2706, known
as the “Act making the Inspection and Recognition of private schools and colleges obligatory for the
Secretary of Public Instruction.”

As contended by PACU,  the Act is unconstitutional because of the following reasons: 1) The act
deprives the owner of the school and colleges as well as teachers and parents of liberty and property
without due process of law; 2) it will also deprive the parents of their natural rights and duty to rear
their children for civic efficiency; and 3) its provisions conferred on the Secretary of Education unlimited
powers and discretion to prescribe rules and standards constitute towards unlawful delegation of
legislative powers.

Additionally, the association contended that the Constitution guaranteed every citizen the right to own
and operate a school and any law requiring previous governmental approval or permit before such
person could exercise the said right.

On the contrary, the Department of Education maintained that 1) the matters does not contain justiciable
controversy and thus does not need court decision or intervention; 2) petitioners are inestoppels to
challenge the validity of the said act; and 3) the Act is constitutionally valid.

Section 1 of Act No. 2706 provides that “It shall be the duty of the Secretary of Public Instruction to
maintain a general standard of efficiency in all private schools and colleges of the Philippines so that the
same shall furnish adequate instruction to the public, in accordance with the class and grade of
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8/8/2020 Case Brief: Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities vs Secretary of Education | The Welfare Of the People Shall Be The Supreme Law

instruction given in them, and for this purpose said Secretary or his duly-authorized representative shall
have authority to advise, inspect, and regulate said schools and colleges in order to determine the
efficiency of instruction given in the same.”

Issue:

Whether or not Act No. 2706 is unconstitutional.

Held:

No, Act No. 2706 is constitutional.

The organic law provides that the state has the power to regulate private schools for the development of
morals, civic efficiency, and scientific aptitude of students. The court found no justiciable controversy.
The power of the courts to declare a law unconstitutional arises only when the interest of litigant require
the use of judicial authority for their protection against actual interference. As such, judicial power is
limited to the decision of actual cases and controversies. Thus, the court does not sit to adjudicate a mere
academic question, such as that provided by the petitioner. On this phase of the litigation, the court
conclude that there has been no undue delegation of legislative power even if the petitioners appended a
list of circulars and memoranda issued by the Department of Education.

Categories: Case Digests, Political Law Tags: 5279, act 2706, act making the inspection and recognition
of private schools and colleges obligatory for the secretary of public instruction, board of textbooks,
department of education, pacu, philippine association of colleges and universities, secretary of education

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