Summary: Soriano vs. Lista (GR 153881, 24 March 2003)

Soriano vs. Lista
[GR 153881, 24 March 2003]
Third Division, Corona (J): 4 concur

Facts: The Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) used to be administered and maintained as a separate unit of the Philippine Navy under Section 4 of RA 5173. It was subsequently placed under the direct supervision and control of the Secretary of the Department of National Defense (DND) pursuant to Section 4 of PD 601. Eventually, it was integrated into the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) as a major subordinate unit of the Philippine Navy under Section 54 of Chapter 8, Sub-title II, Title VIII, Book IV of EO 292, as amended. However, on 30 March 1998, after the said changes in the charter of the PCG, then President Fidel V. Ramos, in the exercise of his statutory authority to reorganize the Office of the President, issued EO 475 transferring the PCG from the DND to the Office of the President. He later on again transferred the PCG from the Office of the President to the Department of Transportation and Communications (DOTC). On various dates, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo promoted Reuben S. Lista to Vice Admiral; Domingo T. Estera to Rear Admiral; Miguel C. Tabares, Arthur N. Gosingan, and Elpidio B. Padama to Commodore; and Efren L. Taduran, Cesar A. Sarile, and Danilo M. Vilda to Naval Captain. They assumed office without confirmation by the Commission on Appointments. Elpidio G. Soriano III, as a member of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines and a taxpayer, filed the petition for Prohibition questioning the constitutionality and legality of the permanent appointments

Issue: Whether the appointment of Vice Admiral, Rear Admiral, Commodores, and Naval Captains of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) requires the confirmation ofthe Commission on Appointments.

Held: It is clear from Section 16, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution that only appointed officers from the rank of colonel or naval captain in the armed forces require confirmation by the CA. The rule is that the plain, clear and unambiguous language of the Constitution should be construed as such and should not be given a construction that changes its meaning. The enumeration of appointments subject to confirmation by the CA under Section 16, Article VII of the 1987 Constitution is exclusive. The clause "officers of the armed forces from the rank of colonel or naval captain" refers to military officers alone. This is clear from the deliberations of the Constitutional Commission on the proposed text of said Section 16, Article VII of the Constitution. Since the PCG is under the DOTC and no longer part of the Philippine Navy or the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the promotions and appointments of respondent officers of the PCG, or any PCG officer from the rank of captain and higher for that matter, do not require confirmation by the CA.

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