SC upholds law giving barangay execs 5-year term

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has upheld the constitutionality of the law that postponed the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE), effectively extending the term of office of incumbent officials by another two years.

In a decision written by then associate justice and now Chief Justice Rodil Zalameda, the high court dismissed the petition filed by election lawyer Romulo Macalintal, who sought to declare the law unconstitutional for postponing elections without compelling reasons and violating the public’s right to suffrage.

Republic Act 12326, enacted in September this year, increased the terms of barangay officials from four to five years and moved the next BSKE to November 2028.

Macalintal argued that the law failed to meet the guidelines set by the SC in its 2023 ruling in Macalintal v Comelec, which allows the postponement of elections only for important, substantial or compelling reasons.

But in its ruling, the SC said the strict guidelines in the 2023 SC ruling do not apply, saying RA 1236 is fundamentally a term-fixing law, not an election postponement law.

The SC said that Congress has the power to fix, change and extend the term of barangay officials as needed, so long as the period before the new term begins is reasonable and not unduly long.

In this case, the high court found the November 2028 date reasonable and not unduly long, pointing out that local leaders were elected in October 2023 and will complete a five-year term consistent with the term set by the law.

The SC also acknowledged lawmakers’ concerns that holding the BSKE in 2027 could interfere with the Commission on Elections’ preparations for the May 2028 national and local elections.

A five-year cycle beginning in 2026, meanwhile, would also cause the BSKE to coincide with the 2031 national and local elections.

The high court also held that the law does not violate due process or right to vote as it serves legitimate government objectives, including effective local governance and continuity of barangay programs. It added that setting a uniform five-year term and election cycle is a reasonable way to achieve these goals.

SC Justices Marvic Leonen, Benjamin Caguioa, Jhosep Lopez and Antonio Kho dissented from the majority ruling.

The BSKE, scheduled last Nov. 2, had already been moved from last year after a law was passed giving BSK officials a four-year term from the previous three.

Critics of the repeated postponements have said the jurisprudence could mean endless postponements and extensions of the BSK term even in 2028. They noted that some youth council officials would already be too old for the SK.

Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia on Friday welcomed the SC’s decision, noting that the ruling, despite not being unanimous, now forms part of jurisprudence and the law of the land, thanking the high court for promptly settling the legal challenge.

Zalameda takes oath

Zalameda yesterday officially took his oath as the 28th chief justice, succeeding Alexander Gesmundo who retired on the same day.

Zalameda took his oath before Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen. He was joined by his family.

The ceremonial turnover of the gavel, meanwhile, was administered by Gesmundo.

Leonen was among the other four aspirants for the chief justice position, which included Associate Justices Benjamin Caguioa, Japar Dimaampao and Jose Midas Marquez.

According to the SC, Zalameda brings more than three decades of experience in the judiciary, having served in roles that spanned both sides of the justice system, from one seeking judicial decisions to now rendering them.

It was Zalameda who wrote the SC decision that overturned the conviction of former first lady Imelda Marcos, the mother of President Marcos, on seven counts of graft.

Zalameda also authored the SC ruling that threw out challenges to Marcos’ presidential bid in 2022, ruling that his estate tax case did not constitute an offense of moral turpitude that warranted disqualification from public office.

He also authored the decision granting a writ of amparo in favor of former Bayan Muna lawmaker Siegfred Deduro, which recognized that red-tagging and guilt by association threaten a person’s right to life, liberty or security.

Malacañang earlier said that Zalameda’s experience across the different levels of the judicial system gives him a “comprehensive understanding of the courts and the people they serve.”

Zalameda was appointed to the Supreme Court by former president Rodrigo Duterte in 2019 after going through the first-ever written examinations for magistrate applicants. Upon his appointment to the SC, he drew criticism for posing with Duterte while flashing the then president’s trademark fist gesture.

Sen. Francis Pangilinan is urging Zalameda to aggressively spearhead the reform of the Philippine justice system, emphasizing the need to rebuild public trust and eradicate judicial corruption. — Neil Jayson Servallos