GR No. 145368, April 12, 2002
Facts:
Petitioner Vice-President Salvador Laurel was appointed as
the head of the National Centennial Commission, a body constituted for the
preparation of the National Centennial celebration in 1998. He was subsequently
appointed as the Chairman of ExpoCorp., and was one of the nine (9)
incorporators. A controversy erupted on the alleged anomalies with the bidding
contracts to some entities and the petitioner was implicated. By virtue of an
investigation conducted by the Office of the Ombudsman, the petitioner was
indicted for alleged violation of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act (RA
3019). The petitioner filed a Motion to Dismiss questioning the jurisdiction of
the Office of the Ombudsman, which was denied. He further filed a motion for
reconsideration which was also denied, hence this petition for certiorari.
The petitioner assails the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman and
contended that he is not a public officer since ExpoCorp is a private
corporation.
Issue: W/N the
petitioner is a public officer
Yes, the Ombudsman has jurisdiction over the case of the
petitioner since he is a public officer. The NCC is an office performing
executive functions since one of its mandate is to implement national policies.
Moreover, the said office was established by virtue of an executive order. It
is clear that the NCC performs sovereign functions, hence it is a public
office. Since petitioner is chair of the NCC, he is therefore a public officer.
The fact that the NCC was characterized by EO 128 as an 'ad-hoc body' make it
less of a public office. Finally, the fact that the petitioner did not receive
any compensation during his tenure is of no consequence since such is merely an
incidence and forms no part of the office.
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