Public accountability
Public office is a public trust. If the office is merely an honorary office that has no salary or fee, is it still considered public office? This is the issue raised in this case of the chairman of a government commission created for the nationwide preparation of the Philippine Centennial (NCC).
NCC was created under Administration Order 223 primarily tasked to take charge of the nationwide preparations for the national celebration of the Philippine Centennial of the Declaration of Philippine Independence and the inauguration of the Malolos Congress. Characterized as an “ad-hoc body”, the existence of the NCC shall terminate upon completion of all activities related to the Centennial Celebrations which A.O. 223 declared as a “vehicle for fostering nationhood and a strong sense of Filipino identity” and opportunity to showcase Filipino heritage and thereby strengthen Filipino values”.
Upon recommendation of the Senate Blue Ribbon Committee and an independent citizens committee created to investigate all facts and circumstances surrounding the centennial projects, the Office of the Ombudsman conducted a preliminary investigation for possible violation of the Anti Graft Law and the Revised Penal Code by the chairman and two other officials of the Philippine Centennial Expo ’98 Corporation (Expocorp), a corporation created to set up and establish the Philippine Centennial International Exposition 1998 (EXPO ’98).
After preliminary investigation, the Ombudsman found probable cause to charge the said officials before the Sandiganbayan for conspiring to violate Section 3(e) of the Anti-Graft Law in relation to RA 1594. The chairman however assailed the jurisdiction of the Ombudsman. He said that he was not a public officer because the NCC was not a public office. So he argued that the Ombudsman had no power to investigate him and file charges before the Sandiganbayan. Was he correct?
No. A public office is the right, authority, and duty, created and conferred by law, by which for a given period, either fixed by law or enduring at the pleasure of the creating power, an individual is invested with some portion of the sovereign functions of the government, to be exercised by him for the benefit of the public. The individual so invested is a public officer. The delegation to the individual of some of the sovereign functions of the government, either legislative, executive or judicial, is the most important characteristic in determining whether a position is a public office or not. Certainly, the law did not delegate upon the NCC functions that can be described as legislative or judicial. But the functions of the NCC can be described as executive functions. The executive power is generally defined as the power to enforce and administer the laws. It is the power of carrying the laws into practical operation and enforcing their due observance. The executive functions, therefore, concern the implementation of the policies set forth by law.
One of the policies set forth in the Constitution, (Section 15, Art. XIV) is that “arts and letters shall enjoy the patronage of the State. The State shall conserve, promote, and popularize the nation’s historical and cultural heritage and resources as well as artistic creations”. The NCC was precisely created to execute the foregoing policies and objectives, to carry them into effect. Under A.O. 223, one of the functions of the NCC is “to undertake the overall study, conceptualization, formulation and implementation of programs and projects on the utilization of culture, arts, literature and media as vehicles for history, economic endeavors and reinvigoration of the spirit of national unity and sense of accomplishment in every Filipino in the context of the Centennial Celebration”. It bears noting that the NCC was created by the President, in whom the executive power is vested, through an executive order. Executive orders are acts of the president providing for rules of general or permanent character in implementation or execution of constitutional or statutory powers.
Furthermore, the NCC also has an admitted role in the country’s economic development, especially in
Clearly the NCC performs sovereign functions. It is therefore a public office, and its chairman, is a public officer. The mere fact that he does not receive any compensation during his tenure is of little consequence. A salary is a usual but not a necessary criterion for determining the nature of the position. It is not conclusive. It is a mere incident and forms no part of the office. Where no salary or fees is attached to the office, it is a naked or honorary office and is supposed to be accepted merely for the public good. Hence the office of the chairman of the NCC may be characterized as an honorary office, as opposed to a lucrative office or office for profit, i. e. one to which salary or compensation or fees are attached. But it is a public office nonetheless.
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