DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 31 May) – Ousted Mindanao Development Authority (MinDA) secretary Maria Belen Sunga-Acosta has filed a motion for reconsideration after the Regional Trial Court dismissed her quo warranto petition against her replacement Leo Tereso Magno.
In a statement on Friday, Acosta expressed dismay that her petition “was not even heard” by the trial court although it presented “solid” legal arguments.
Acosta refused to vacate her office at MinDA and vowed to exhaust all available legal remedies.
“I will continue to hold office for as long as I can, especially where my signature is needed to complete the process of paperwork that has already commenced,” she said.
She maintained that Republic Act 9996, the law creating MinDA, provides for the tasks and qualifications of a chairman whose term is fixed for six years and who enjoys security of tenure.
In a two-page decision dated May 27 but released on Thursday, RTC Branch 15 Presiding Judge Mario C. Duaves dismissed the quo warranto case on the ground that it was an “improper remedy” as it was not anchored on the qualification of Magno and in addition, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr., as the appointing authority, is immune from suit.
Duaves said the petition filed by Acosta last May 24 was meant to prevent Magno from taking over as MinDA chair, but added that the nature and purpose of quo warranto as a legal remedy is “to remove a person from office on the ground of ineligibility or disqualification.”
He said the “core issue boils down on the validity” of the appointing power of Marcos Jr. and his act of removing Acosta.
The judge cited the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Esmero vs Duterte that the President is “immune from suit during his incumbency, regardless of the nature of the suit filed against him.”
“The petition must be dismissed not only on the ground that it is an improper remedy as it is not anchored on respondent’s (Magno) qualification but more so on the premise that it is a challenge against an act of President who is immune from suit, even without him invoking the privilege,” Duaves said.
Magno, appointed by President Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on May 13, took his oath of office on May 21 and joined the Palace delegation during a two-day state visit in Brunei Darussalam from May 28 to 29.
Acosta said her position is “not vacant, already occupied, not co-terminus, and not a position of trust, unlike those of other Secretaries who serve at the pleasure of the signing authority. “
“This is more than a personal cause. I feel the obligation to defend RA 9996, or the Mindanao Development Act of 2010, and all it represents. This blatant disregard of a Republic Act should not happen again to MinDA or to anyone. Prevailing laws should not be subject to political wherewithals or personal whims,” she said.
She said “stability, integration, and continuity of development work is vital to our common goals for Mindanao.”
She added that “good works of public servants ought to be encouraged, not undermined.”
“We owe it to the young generation – to set the bar high on good governance by example. We must accord due respect to the laws of the land and uphold the very principles of democracy. Wag pasisiil. (Do not be suppressed),” she said.
She thanked the personnel of MinDA who “silently pray with me, for our organization and our country.” “I so appreciate all your prayers and kind words. I am comforted by the fact that I am not alone,” she said. (Antonio L. Colina IV/MindaNews)
