Tañada v. Angara (1997) FACTS: Petition for certiorari: State action to enter intoWTO April 15 1994 – DTI Sec signed in Morocco thefinal act embodying the results of multilateralnegotiations regarding the WTO o Aug 12 – Senate receives letter fromPresident submitting the Uruguay FinalAct o Aug 13 – president’ letter submittingthe Agreement establishing the WTO,Ministerial Declarations, etc o Dec 9 – PS 1083, immediate adoption of the Agreement Establishing the WTO o Dec 14 – Senate Resolution No. 97,senate concurring in the ratification bythe president of the agreementestablishing the WTO o Dec 29 – present petition was filed Petitioner argues for the unconstitutionality of the WTO: o WTO requires the Philippines to placenationals and products of member-countries at par with each other o WTO limits, intrudes, impairs theconstitutional powers of both Congressand the SC o WTO violates the constitutionalmandate: to develop a self-reliant andindependent national economyeffectively controlled by Filipinos, togive preference to qualified Filipinosand to promote preferential use of Filipino labor, domestic materials andlocally produced goods Petitioner specifically seeks: o For the nullification of the concurrenceof the Senate with the President’sagreement to join the WTO o For the prohibition of the enforcementand implementation of the WTOISSUE/s: WON the petition presents a political question WON the members of the Senate whoparticipated in the deliberations and votingleading to the Senate Reso No. 97 are estoppedfrom impugning the validity of the same, or theAgreement WON the provisions of the Agreeement violatethe provisions of Sec19, Art 2, and Secs 10 and12, Art 12 of the 1987 Consti WON the provisions of the Agreement undulylimit, restrict, and impair the sovereignty of thePhil Legislature WON provisions of the Agreement impair theexercise of judicial power WON Senate acted with a grave abuse of discretion in concurring only in the agreementestablishing the WTOSC RULING: ISSUE # 1: MATTER OF JURISDICTION: political orjusticiable o JUSTICIABLE because it seeks thenullity of a senate resolution on theground that it contravenes theConstitution o An act of legislature is alleged to haveinfringed the Constitution: judicialreview not just a matter of right but aduty (within the court’s expandedjurisdiction) o Application of a constitutional provision o Judiciary as final arbiter on GADLEJ o Judicial review for GADLEJ, not reviewof the wisdom of a legislative orexecutive policy, not upon the meritsnor propriety of govt policies, ONLY todetermine WON there has been GADLEJ WTO AGREEMENT AND ECONOMIC NATIONALISM o Economic nationalism: violated by theparity provisions and nationaltreatment clauses in the WTOAgreement o Economic nationalism in Sec 19, Art 2,Secs 10 and 12, Art 12 of the Consti o WTO: places nationals and foreignproducts on the same footing as Filipinoand domestic products in contraventionof the FILIPINO FIRST POLICY Render meaningless“effectively controlled byFilipinos” WTO: ensures conformity of national economiclaws, regulations, and administrative procedureswith its annexed agreements and imposedobligations o Negate the preferential treatmentaccorded to Filipino labor, domesticmaterials and locally produced goods RESPONDENTS: o Constitutional provisions are not self-executing, merely policies o Such nationalistic provisions must beread in relation to: Art 12, Sec 1 and13. o Read properly, the cited WTO provisionsdo not violate the Consti o WTO agreement contains sufficientsafeguards for developing countries • Declaration of Principles NOT SELF-EXECUTING o Article 2 is a mere declaration of principles and state policies – basicpolitical creed of the nation o Not intended to be self-executing o Used as aids by the judiciary inadjudication, or legislature inlawmaking o Not self-executing provisions, adisregard of which cannot give rise to acause of action in the courts o Kilosbayan, Inc v. Morato: Do notembody judicially enforceableconstitutional rights but guidelines forlegislation
Posted on: Mon, 29 Jul 2013 05:15:48 +0000
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