WENCESLAO PASCUAL vs.

THE SECRETARY OF PUBLIC WORKS

ANDCOMMUNICATIONS, et. al.

Facts:
Petitioner Wenceslao Pascual, as Provincial Governor of Rizal,
instituted an action for declaratory relief, with injunction, upon the ground
that R.A. No. 920 appropriated funds amounting P85,000.00, "for the
construction, reconstruction, repair, extension and improvement" of "Pasig
feeder road terminals. However, at the time of the passage and approval of
said Act, the aforementioned feeder roads were "nothing but projected and
planned subdivision roads, not yet constructed, * * * within the Antonio
Subdivision * * *situated at * * * Pasig, Rizal" and "do not connect any
government property or any important premises to the main highway." It
was also stated that the private properties were owned by Jose C. Zulueta,
who, at the time of the passage and approval of said Act, was a member of
the Senate. Respondents moved to dismiss the petition upon the ground
that petitioner had "no legal capacity to sue", that he is "not aware of any
law which makes illegal the appropriation of public funds for the
improvement of * * * private property"; that, the constitutional provision
invoked by petitioner is inapplicable to the donation in question, the same
being a pure act of liberality, not a contract; and there is public purpose
because people living in the subdivision will directly be benefited from the
construction of the roads, and the government also gains from the donation
of the land supposed to be occupied by the streets, made by its owner to
the government..
The lower court dismissed the petition on the ground that although
public interest is involved in this case, and petitioner has “the requisite
personalities" to question the constitutionality, the legality of said donation
may not be contested, however, by petitioner herein, because his "interests
are not directly affected" thereby; and that, accordingly, the appropriation in
question "should be upheld." Hence, this present recourse.

Issue:
Whether or not the incidental gains by the public be considered
"public purpose" for the purpose of justifying an expenditure of the
government.

Held:
No. "It is a general rule that the legislature is without power to
appropriate public revenues for anything but a public purpose. * * * It is the
essential character of the direct object of the expenditure which must
determine its validity as justifying a tax and not the magnitude of the
interests to be affected nor the degree to which the general advantage of
the community,and thus the public welfare, may be ultimately benefited by
their promotion. Incidental advantage to the public or to the state, which
results from the promotion of private interests, and the prosperity of private
enterprises or business, does not justify their aid by the use of public
money."
Generally, under the express or implied provisions of the constitution,
public funds may be used only for a public purpose. The right of the
legislature to appropriate public funds is correlative with its right to tax, and,
under constitutional provisions against taxation except for public purposes
and prohibiting the collection of a tax for one purpose and the devotion
thereof to another purpose, no appropriation of state funds can be made for
other than a public purpose.
The test of the constitutionality of a statute requiring the use of public
funds is whether the statute is designed to promote the public interests, as
opposed to the furtherance of the advantage of individuals, although such
advantage to individuals might incidentally serve the public.
Where the land on which projected feeder roads are to be
constructed belongs to a private person, an appropriation made by
Congress for that purpose is null and void, and a donation to the
Government, made over five (5) months after the approval and effectivity of
the Act for the purpose of giving a "semblance of legality" to the
appropriation, does not cure the basic defect.Consequently, a judicial
nullification of said donation need not precede the declaration of
unconstitutionality of said appropriation.