Padilla, Kimberly Rose G. Admin Law-Case Digest

Villena vs. Secretary of Interior, GR No.
L-46570, April 21, 1939
Facts:
The Division of Investigation of the Department of Justice, upon the request of the Secretary of
the Interior, conducted an inquiry into the conduct of the petitioner, Jose D. Villena, mayor of Makati,
Rizal, and as a result of which, the latter was found to have committed bribery, extortion, malicious abuse
of authority and unauthorized practice of the law profession. The Secretary of the Interior then
recommended to the President the suspension of the Villena which was granted by the President. The
Secretary of the Interior suspended the petitioner from office on February 9, 1939, and then and
thereafter wired the Provincial Governor of Rizal with instruction that the petitioner be advised
accordingly.
Issue:
Whether the Secretary of the Interior has the legal authority (a) to order an investigation, by a
special investigation appointed by him, of the charges of corruption and irregularity brought to his
attention against the mayor of the municipality of Makati, Province of Rizal, who is the petitioner herein,
and (b) to decree the suspension of the said mayor pending the investigation of the charges.
Ruling:
Yes. The Secretary of Interior has the power to order investigation and to suspend Mayor Villena
Section 79 (C) of the Administrative Code provides as follows:
The Department Head shall have direct control, direction, and supervision over all bureaus and
offices under his jurisdiction and may, any provision of existing law to the contrary notwithstanding, repeal
or modify the decisions of the chiefs of said bureaus of offices when advisable in the public interest.
The Department Head may order the investigation of any act conduct of any person in the service
of any bureau of office under his department and in connection therewith may appoint a committee or
designate an official or person who shall conduct such investigations, and such committee, official, or
person may summon, witness by subpoena and subpoena duces tecum, administer oath and take
testimony relevant to the investigation.
This section should be interpreted in relation to section 86 of the same Code which grants to the
Department of the Interior "executive supervision over the administration of provinces, municipalities,
chartered cities and other local political subdivisions.” Hence, the Secretary of the Interior is invested with
authority to order the investigation of the charges against the petitioner and to appoint a special
investigator for that purpose.
As regards the challenged power of the Secretary of the Interior to decree the suspension of the
herein petitioner pending an administrative investigation of the charges against him, the Supreme Court
held that under the presidential type of government which we have adopted and considering the
departmental organization established and continued in force by paragraph 1, section 12, Article VII, of
our Constitution, all executive and administrative organizations are adjuncts of the Executive Department,
the heads of the various executive departments are assistants and agents of the Chief Executive, and
except in cases where the Chief Executive is required by the Constitution or the law to act in person or
the exigencies of the situation demand that he act personally, the multifarious executive and
administrative functions of the Chief Executive are performed by and through the executive departments,
and the acts of the secretaries of such departments, 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.
The Principle of Qualified Political Agency postulates that the personality of the heads of the
various departments is in reality the projection of that of the president and as characterized by Chief
Justice Taft of the Supreme Court of the United States, "each head of a department is, and must be, the
President's alter ego in the matters of that department where the President is required by law to exercise
authority". Secretaries of departments, of course, exercise certain powers under the law but the law
cannot impair or in any way affect the constitutional power of control and direction of the President. As a
matter of executive policy, they may be granted departmental autonomy as to certain matters but this is
by mere concession of the executive, in the absence of valid legislation in the particular field. If the
President, then, is the authority in the Executive Department, he assumes the corresponding
responsibility.
Marcos vs. Manglapuz, GR No. 88211, October 27, 1989
Facts:
Mr. Marcos, in his deathbed, has signified his wish to return to the Philipppines to die. But Mrs.
Aquino, considering the dire consequences to the nation of his return at a time when the stability of
government is threatened from various directions and the economy is just beginning to rise and move
forward, has stood firmly on the decision to bar the return of Mr. Marcos and his family.
The petition for mandamus and prohibition asks the Courts to order the respondents to issue
travel documents to Mr. Marcos and the immediate members of his family and to enjoin the
implementation of the President's decision to bar their return to the Philippines.
Issue:
Whether or not, in the exercise of the powers granted by the Constitution, the President may
prohibit the Marcoses from returning to the Philippines.
Ruling:
Yes. The Court held that the Marcoses’ demand or request to be allowed to return to the
Philippines cannot be considered in the light solely of the constitutional provisions guaranteeing liberty of
abode and the right to travel, subject to certain exceptions, or of case law which clearly never
contemplated situations even remotely similar to the present one. It must be treated as a matter that is
appropriately addressed to those residual unstated powers of the President which are implicit in and
correlative to the paramount duty residing in that office to safeguard and protect general welfare. In that
context, such request or demand should submit to the exercise of a broader discretion on the part of the
President to determine whether it must be granted or denied
The power involved is the President's residual power to protect the general welfare of the people.
It is founded on the duty of the President, as steward of the people. It is not only the power of the
President but also his duty to do anything not forbidden by the Constitution or the laws that the needs of
the nation demand. It is a power borne by the President's duty to preserve and defend the Constitution. It
also may be viewed as a power implicit in the President's duty to take care that the laws are faithfully
executed.
The power of the President to keep the peace is not limited merely to exercising the commander-
in-chief powers in times of emergency or to leading the State against external and internal threats to its
existence. The President is not only clothed with extraordinary powers in times of emergency, but is also
tasked with attending to the day-to-day problems of maintaining peace and order and ensuring domestic
tranquility in times when no foreign foe appears on the horizon.

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Villena vs. Secretary of Interior, GR No.

L-46570, April 21, 1939

Section 79 (C) of the Administrative Code provides as follows:

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