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JUAN GARCIA RIVERA v. COMELEC

FACTS:

During the local elections in January 1988, petitioner Juan Garcia Rivera and private respondent Juan Mitre Garcia II were candidates for the position of Mayor of Guinobatan, Albay. The Municipal Board of Canvassers declared Rivera as the duly elected Mayor with a majority of ten (10) votes. Dissatisfied with the results, Garcia filed an election protest with the Regional Trial Court on January 26, 1988. After hearing and considering the report of a Revision Committee, the trial court rendered a decision on September 9, 1989, finding Garcia to have obtained 6,376 votes compared to Rivera's 6,222 votes.

Rivera appealed the decision to the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), and its First Division modified the judgment of the trial court. The COMELEC affirmed the annulment of Rivera's proclamation as the duly elected Municipal Mayor, declared Garcia as the duly elected Mayor, and ordered Rivera to turnover the office to Garcia. Rivera's motion for reconsideration was denied by the COMELEC en banc, which reaffirmed Garcia as the duly elected Mayor with a winning margin of one hundred twenty-three (123) votes over Rivera. Garcia assumed office as Mayor on October 10, 1990, but was later served with a temporary restraining order from the Supreme Court upon Rivera's motion.

Rivera filed a petition seeking the annulment of the COMELEC en banc decision and an order to restrain its implementation. He argued that the decision had not yet become final and executory and that he had not exhausted his period to elevate the decision to the Supreme Court for review. Rivera also contended that the COMELEC lacked authority to issue the writ of execution. On the other hand, Garcia argued that the Constitution deemed COMELEC decisions on election contests involving municipal and barangay officials to be final, executory, and not appealable. He also cited a previous petition by Rivera to the Supreme Court, which was dismissed for lack of merit.

ISSUES:

  1. Whether the COMELEC decision declaring respondent Garcia as the duly elected Mayor of Guinobatan is already final and executory at the time the petition was filed.

  2. Whether the COMELEC has the authority to issue the assailed order and writ of execution.

RULING:

  1. The COMELEC decision declaring respondent Garcia as the duly elected Mayor of Guinobatan is already final and executory at the time the petition was filed. The Supreme Court has dismissed a previous petition filed by Rivera raising the same issue, thus the decision has become final and executory.

  2. The COMELEC has the authority to issue the assailed order and writ of execution. The provision cited by petitioner that relates to decisions in pre-proclamation cases and petitions to deny due course or disqualify a candidate does not apply to this case, as this case involves an election protest.

PRINCIPLES:

  • Decisions of the COMELEC on election contests involving elective municipal and barangay officials are final, executory, and not appealable (Article IX-C, Section 2, Paragraph 2, 1987 Constitution).

  • The Supreme Court has the authority to review on certiorari a COMELEC decision, order or ruling (Section 7, Article IX-A, Constitution).

  • The dismissal of a previous petition filed with the Supreme Court on the same issue renders the COMELEC decision final and executory.