AGANON, ISAAC JOSHUA L.

January 3, 2023
Atty. Rowena Simbahan

CONSTITUTIONAL LAW REVIEW FINAL EXAM

1. The law is unconstitutional. The qualifications prescribed by the 1987 Constitution

are Filipino citizenship, residency requirement and the candidate must be able to read
or write. In the case at bar, the law passed by Congress is in contrary to the
Constitution. It prescribes qualifications stricter than what the Constitution provides.

2. Dale’s argument is incorrect. As provided by jurisprudence, conviction of Anti-

Fencing Law is a crime involving moral turpitude. If one is convicted of a crime
involving moral turpitude then he or she becomes disqualified to run for public office.
In this case, Dale was convicted and sentenced by final judgment with Violation of
Anti-Fencing Law which is a crime involving moral turpitude. Therefore, Dale cannot
run for Vice-Mayor of Makati.

3. No. Even though he availed of probation for Violation of Anti-Fencing Law, the fact
is still clear that he was convicted by final judgment of a crime involving moral
turpitude. He availed of probation as a penalty for his conviction so he is still
disqualified to run for Vice-Mayor of Makati.

4. Bacani’s argument is erroneous and illogical. Bacani was wrong here because as
stated by jurisprudence, he was only designated in an acting capacity meaning that the
position can be filled up by another person who is also qualified in an official and
permanent capacity. It does not matter even if he already has the civil service eligibility
for that position, the point is that he is only serving in an acting capacity so he can be
replaced anytime. In this case, Allan Pelagio was appointed as the permanent person in
place of the retired senior officer.

5. Yes. In this case, the Republic cannot be sued for its failure to adhere to the terms of
the donation made by Corazon. Since the property is already owned by the Republic,
Corazon cannot dictate to the government what the latter does with the property
donated. The property became public property so the government can do what it wants
to do with the said property being now its owner.

6. No. The ordinance is not a valid exercise of police power. The City Government of A
if it wants to provide burial grounds for the poor then they should expropriate the land
from commercial cemeteries through payment of just compensation.

7. The petition filed by the incumbent officers is meritorious. What the DILG did is not
an exercise of general supervisory power over the Liga ng mga Barangay but of control
which contravenes the Constitution. In this case, the DILG set aside the actions made by
the incumbent officers in the conduct of the proposed Liga ng Barangay Elections. The
act of setting aside is an act of control and not supervision. Liga ng Barangay as a part
of the LGU has local autonomy. The DILG can only check if the conduct of Liga ng
AGANON, ISAAC JOSHUA L. January 3, 2023
Atty. Rowena Simbahan
Barangay Elections is compliant with election rules but it cannot set aside the actions
made by the latter.

8. Yes. The petitioners are correct. Voters of the current province should be included in
the plebiscite if the subject is the creation of a new province within the existing
province. In this case, since the new province will divide the existing boundaries of
Negros Occidental then the voters of the parent province Negros Occidental must be
included in the plebiscite.

9. Yes. Since the conduct of a plebiscite for the creation of a new province is a case that
has transcendental importance being of public interest, then this can still be a subject of
judicial review. Even though the plebiscite was already held and officials were
appointed, it can still be a subject of judicial review.

10. Yes. XYZ Realty Corp. is correct. Expropriation as a fundamental power of the state
emanates from the Congress. Only by express delegation of Congress can expropriation
be exercised by LGUs. The ordinance passed by the City of Pasig expropriating a parcel
of land against XYZ Realty is not valid.

11. Yes. As stated by jurisprudence, an extrajudicial confession made in an interview is

admissible in evidence and can be used against the accused. This is not a case of
custodial investigation wherein any statement made by an accused without counsel is
not admissible in evidence. But in this case of an extrajudicial confession with a radio
news reporter, the statement is admissible in evidence.

12. Yes. The condonation doctrine is applicable in this case. Since Governor Viray was
charged but won re-election, this is considered to be an act of condonation by the
people of his offense. The motion to dismiss should be granted.

13. No. The election protest will still be tried based on public interest. The rationale for
hearing election protests even though the protestant is dead is so that the people will be
able to know the truth. The people as the sovereign voters deserve to know the truth of
the outcome of the elections.

14. No. Even though the Vice-Mayor elect will not directly benefit from the late
Candidate A’s election protest, the former can still participate because the election
protest case is a matter of public interest. The public deserves to know the truth of the
outcome of the elections.

15. Yes. As provided by the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations diplomats are
immune from search and seizure. In this case, the items carried by Dr. Martinez cannot
be a subject of search and seizure because she is a diplomat, a director of WHO office in
Manila. Since Dr. Martinez is immune from paying taxes and duties then the items she
carried whether they can be imposed with duties are exempt.
AGANON, ISAAC JOSHUA L. January 3, 2023
Atty. Rowena Simbahan

16. No. The court’s action of conducting an inquiry into the validity of Dr. Martinez’s
diplomatic immunity is an intrusion to the separation of powers especially the
Executive through the Department of Foreign Affairs. Courts should respect the
Executive conducting foreign policy by welcoming diplomats to the country.

17. Yes. The court order for Crystalline to go to a physical examination to determine if
she is pregnant or not is violative of her constitutional right of self-incrimination or
being a witness against self. Since Crystalline was charged of adultery, the prosecution
can use the physical examination to determine her adultery if for example she is found
to be pregnant. The prosecution should use another means to prove Crystalline’s
adultery.

18. No. Jesse is qualified to run for Mayor in the City of X. As stated by jurisprudence, a
dual citizen running for Vice Mayor is considered to have renounced his other
citizenship because in the filing of a certificate of candidacy, there is a statement of
allegiance as a Filipino and a candidate will swear to it that his allegiance is to the
Philippines.

19. The arguments of Carlos’ counsel are not valid. Warrantless searches can be done in
search of moving vehicles. In the case at bar, SPO1 Turano already received information
that a pusher will pass by Masagana Street so he decided to wait at Masagana street.
The marijuana gathered from Carlos is admissible in evidence. The warrantless search
and seizure done was valid as provided by jurisprudence.

20. No. The province of Bataan as an LGU is automatically entitled to the P 100 Million
IRA for the current year. The distribution of IRA does not need any conditions. The
LGUs are entitled automatically as part of their local autonomy. The Oversight Council
by the President is unconstitutional because it is violative of the LGU’s principle of local
autonomy. It exceeds the President’s power of general supervision over LGUs as the
oversight is an exercise of control.