By Tetch Torres
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 17:15:00 12/03/2009
MANILA, Philippines – Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) Governor Datu Zaldy Ampatuan has asked the Supreme Court to declare as unconstitutional President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s order placing three provinces in Mindanao under a State of Emergency.
In his petition for a temporary restraining order and preliminary
injunction, Ampatuan, together with ARMM Vice Governor Ansaruddin Adiong and ARMM-Regional Legislative Assembly Speaker Regie Sahali-Generale, said Proclamation 1946 and Administrative Order No. 273 was contrary to Article X, Section 16 of the Constitution, which provides that “the President can only interfere in the affairs and activities of a local government unit if she finds that the latter has acted contrary to law.”
Petitioners added that the proclamation also violated Section 1,
Article V and Section 2 of Article XVI of Republic Act No. 9054 (Expanded Organic Act for ARMM) which gives the regional government to exercise disciplinary authority over officials and employees in the region.
“The law is clear. The power to discipline erring officials or
employees lies with the Regional Government. Thus, to mete the penalty of suspension and replacement upon those who are merely ‘suspected’ and not to mention, not proven to have complicity in the Maguindanao ‘massacre’ is to unforgivably and despotically contravene the provision,” the petitioners said through their lawyer Sigfrid Fortun.
Proclamation No. 1946 was issued by President Arroyo on November 24, a day after the Maguindanao massacre to prevent similar incidents from spilling over to other parts of Central Mindanao.
It effectively placed the provinces of Maguindao and Sultan Kudarat, and the City of Cotabato under a state of emergency.
On the basis of the said proclamation, President Arroyo issued
Administrative Order No. 273 giving Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno the authority to exercise administrative control over the ARMM, including the power to suspend all local officials suspected of having complicity in the Maguindanao massacre.
The petitioners also said that the takeover of the entire ARMM has no basis since Proclamation No. 146 limited the imposition of state of emergency to the provinces of Maguindano and Sultan Kudarat and the City of Cotabato.
“Such provision is a categorical admission that as to the rest of
ARMM, no such emergency is found to exist. Thus, taking over the entire ARMM by virtue of such proclamation or any pertinent, directive or order is clearly without legal basis or is in excess of what the proclamation, assuming its validity [which is denied] allows,”
petitioners said.
Respondents include Puno, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the Philippine National Police (PNP).
View story as posted on Inquirer.net
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