Samson vs. Aguirre

A law creating a city enjoys the presumption of constitutionality and is presumed to have passed through regular congressional processes; one attacking it must prove invalidity beyond reasonable doubt, and mere allegations that statutory requisites were not met cannot overcome that presumption. The omission of a seat of government in the city’s charter is not fatal where the Local Government Code allows the city to establish a government center after creation.

Petitioner Moises S. Samson was an incumbent councilor of the first district of Quezon City; respondents were the Executive Secretary, the Commission on Elections, and the Department of Budget, sued in their official capacities. The dispute concerned Republic Act No. 8535, which created the City of Novaliches out of 15 barangays of Quezon City, and the Local Government Code of 1991, which prescribes income, population or land area, seat-of-government, and non-adverse-effect requirements for the creation of a city. The Constitution’s appended ordinance apportions seats in the House of Representatives among legislative districts.

On February 23, 1998, President Fidel V. Ramos signed Republic Act No. 8535, creating the City of Novaliches out of 15 barangays of Quezon City. Petitioner Moises S. Samson, incumbent councilor of the first district of Quezon City, filed a petition challenging the law’s constitutionality and sought to enjoin the Executive Secretary from ordering its implementation, the Commission on Elections from holding a plebiscite for the creation of the City of Novaliches, and the Department of Budget and Management from disbursing funds for the plebiscite. He also prayed for a preliminary injunction or temporary restraining order.

Petitioner alleged that R.A. No. 8535 failed to conform to the criteria in Sections 7, 11(a), and 450(a) of the Local Government Code as to income, population, land area, seat of government, and adverse effect on Quezon City, and to Article 11(b)(1) and (2) of the Implementing Rules as to furnishing a copy to the Quezon City Council of the barangay resolution. He asserted that certifications as to income, population, and land area were not presented to Congress during deliberations, citing the Senate Committee on Local Government hearings held on October 3 and 27, 1997, though he was silent on the hearings held by the appropriate committee in the House of Representatives. He likewise pointed out that no certification attested that Quezon City would not be adversely affected in terms of income, population, and land area. He further argued that the law would in effect amend the Constitution.

Respondents, through the Office of the Solicitor General, traversed the allegations. They claimed petitioner failed to substantiate his claims with convincing proof and argued in their memorandum that he bore the burden of overcoming the legal presumption that Congress considered all the legal requirements under the Local Government Code in passing R.A. No. 8535. They also stated that the petition was devoid of any pertinent document supporting the claim that the law was unconstitutional, and prayed for dismissal for lack of merit.

During the Senate Committee on Local Government public hearings, resource persons from the National Statistics Office, Bureau of Local Government Finance, Land Management Bureau, and Department of Budget and Management were present, along with officials of Quezon City. The representative from the Bureau of Local Government Finance estimated the combined average annual income of the 13 barangays for 1995 and 1996 to be around P26,952,128.26. The representative from the National Statistics Office estimated the population in the barangays that would comprise the proposed City of Novaliches to be around 347,310. Quezon City Mayor Ismael Mathay, Jr. was present during the deliberations and made no mention of adverse effects on Quezon City; he stressed instead his concern about the inclusion of all Quezon City voters in the plebiscite. The bill that became R.A. No. 8535 originated in the House of Representatives, with Cong. Dante Liban of Quezon City as principal sponsor. Under the Implementing Rules, written certifications were required to be attached to the petition for the creation of a city, to be submitted by interested municipalities or barangays to Congress in the form of a resolution; petitioner did not present a copy of that petition. R.A. No. 8535 did not specify a seat of government. The matter was widely publicized in the mass media.

• Noncompliance with Local Government Code Criteria: Petitioner argued that R.A. No. 8535 failed to conform to the criteria in Sections 7, 11(a), and 450(a) of the Local Government Code as to income, population, land area, seat of government, and adverse effect on Quezon City, and to Article 11(b)(1) and (2) of the Implementing Rules as to furnishing a copy to the Quezon City Council of the barangay resolution.
• Lack of Certifications to Congress: Petitioner asserted that certifications as to income, population, and land area were not presented to Congress during the deliberations, citing the Senate Committee on Local Government hearings on October 3 and 27, 1997.
• No Certification of No Adverse Effect: Petitioner pointed out that no certification attested that the mother local government unit, Quezon City, would not be adversely affected by the creation of the City of Novaliches in terms of income, population, and land area.
• Seat of Government: Petitioner argued that R.A. No. 8535 failed to specify the seat of government of the proposed City of Novaliches as required under Section 11(a) of the Local Government Code.
• Constitutional Amendment: Petitioner argued that the law would in effect amend the Constitution.
• Oral Manifestations Not Certifications: Petitioner averred that the oral manifestations made by representatives of government offices were not enough certification.

• Burden of Proof: Respondents argued that petitioner had the burden of proof to overcome the legal presumption that Congress considered all the legal requirements under the Local Government Code of 1991 in passing R.A. No. 8535.
• Lack of Evidence: Respondents claimed that petitioner failed to substantiate his allegations with convincing proof and that the petition was devoid of any pertinent document supporting his claim that R.A. No. 8535 is unconstitutional.
• Official Statements as Certifications: Respondents replied that during the hearings, particularly by the Local Government Committee headed by Senator Sotto on October 3 and 27, 1997, officials from the DBM, DILG, and Finance, along with other officers armed with official statistics and reference materials, were present; in their official capacity they spoke and shed light on population, land area, and income, and their official statements could serve the same purpose as certificates.
• Presumption of Compliance: Respondents urged that the requirements were met appropriately in the passage of the assailed legislative act.
• Dismissal for Lack of Merit: Respondents prayed that the petition be dismissed for lack of merit.

• Noncompliance with Income, Population, Land Area, and Notice Requirements: Whether R.A. No. 8535 is unconstitutional for failure to comply with Sections 7, 11(a), and 450(a) of the Local Government Code and Article 11(b)(1) and (2) of the Implementing Rules as to income, population, land area, seat of government, adverse effect on Quezon City, and furnishing a copy to the Quezon City Council of the barangay resolution.
• Lack of Certifications: Whether the absence of certifications to Congress as to income, population, and land area invalidates R.A. No. 8535.
• Seat of Government: Whether the failure of R.A. No. 8535 to specify the seat of government invalidates the law under Section 11(a) of the Local Government Code.
• Adverse Effect on Quezon City: Whether R.A. No. 8535 is invalid for failure to show that the creation of the City of Novaliches would not adversely affect Quezon City.
• Constitutional Amendment: Whether R.A. No. 8535 will in effect amend the Constitution.
• Presumption of Constitutionality and Burden of Proof: Whether petitioner overcame the presumption of constitutionality and proved the law’s invalidity beyond reasonable doubt.

• Noncompliance with Income, Population, Land Area, and Notice Requirements: No. The petition was dismissed; petitioner failed to prove noncompliance, and the official estimates during the Senate hearings showed income and population exceeding the statutory minimums. The alleged failure to furnish the Quezon City Council a copy of the petition did not invalidate the law.
• Lack of Certifications: No. Every law is presumed to have passed through regular congressional processes, and petitioner’s mere allegations that certifications were not submitted to Congress could not overcome that presumption.
• Seat of Government: No. The omission is not fatal because Section 12 of the Local Government Code, made applicable by Section 54 of R.A. No. 8535, allows the city to establish a government center after creation, which may serve as the seat of government.
• Adverse Effect on Quezon City: No. Petitioner presented no concrete evidence of adverse effect; Mayor Mathay did not raise such an issue during the deliberations, and the plebiscite would allow all concerned to raise it before voting.
• Constitutional Amendment: No. The ordinance appended to the Constitution merely apportions seats in the House of Representatives and does not provide that Metro Manila shall forever be composed of only 17 cities and municipalities.
• Presumption of Constitutionality and Burden of Proof: No. Petitioner failed to present clear and convincing proof to defeat the presumption of constitutionality and did not provide substantial and persuasive legal reasons for the reliefs sought.

• Noncompliance with Income, Population, Land Area, and Notice Requirements: Section 7 of the Local Government Code requires creation or conversion to be based on verifiable indicators of viability and projected capacity to provide services, namely income, population, and land area, with compliance attested to by the Department of Finance, National Statistics Office, and Land Management Bureau. Article 11 of the Implementing Rules requires a city to have an average annual income of not less than P20,000,000.00 for the immediately preceding two consecutive years based on 1991 constant prices, as certified by the Department of Finance, and either a population of not less than 150,000 inhabitants, as certified by the National Statistics Office, or a contiguous land area of at least 100 square kilometers, as certified by the Land Management Bureau. Petitioner claimed that no certifications were submitted to Congress, but the bill originated in the House of Representatives, and petitioner presented no proof that the House Committee on Local Government did not receive the certifications; allegations cannot substitute for proof. During the Senate hearings, the Bureau of Local Government Finance representative estimated the combined average annual income of the 13 barangays for 1995 and 1996 at around P26,952,128.26, exceeding the P20,000,000.00 requirement, while the National Statistics Office representative estimated the population at around 347,310, exceeding the 150,000 requirement. Because the law requires income and either population or land area, there was no need to consider land area, and judicial notice could be taken that Novaliches is now highly urbanized. The official statements of government representatives in open session, under oath and in their official capacity, could serve the same purpose as certificates and carried greater solemnity than routine certifications. Petitioner also failed to show that no written certifications were submitted; under the Implementing Rules, written certifications were required to be attached to the petition for creation submitted by interested municipalities or barangays to Congress in the form of a resolution, and petitioner did not present a copy of that petition. As to the alleged failure to furnish the Quezon City Council a copy of the petition, even if true, it did not invalidate R.A. No. 8535 because the requirement’s purpose was to inform the City Council and enable it to formulate comments and recommendations; the council members were aware of the petition, the matter was widely publicized, and they could not claim ignorance of its contents.
• Lack of Certifications: Every statute is presumed valid, and every law is presumed to have passed through regular congressional processes. A person asserting the contrary bears the burden of proving his allegations clearly and unmistakably. The presumption stands that the law passed by Congress, based on Cong. Liban’s bill, complied with all requisites. Petitioner did not present proof, but only allegations, that no certifications were submitted to the House Committee on Local Government, and he did not show that the representatives present at the Senate hearings did not also submit written certifications. The official statements during the hearings, made by resource persons from the National Statistics Office, Bureau of Local Government Finance, Land Management Bureau, Department of Budget and Management, and Quezon City officials, could serve the same purpose as certificates.
• Seat of Government: Section 11(a) of the Local Government Code requires the law or ordinance creating or merging local government units to specify the seat of government from where governmental and corporate services shall be delivered. R.A. No. 8535 did not provide for a seat of government. This omission, however, is not fatal. Under Section 12 of the Local Government Code, which applies to the proposed City of Novaliches by virtue of Section 54 of R.A. No. 8535, the city can still establish a seat of government after its creation. Section 12 directs provinces, cities, and municipalities to endeavor to establish a government center, and such site can very well also be the seat of government from where governmental and corporate services are delivered.
• Adverse Effect on Quezon City: Petitioner failed to present concrete evidence that the creation of the City of Novaliches would adversely affect Quezon City. Quezon City Mayor Ismael Mathay, Jr. was present during the Senate Committee on Local Government deliberations and made no mention of any adverse effects. As chief executive of Quezon City, he would be the first person to protest any development detrimental to the city. His failure to raise an adverse issue, and his emphasis instead on the inclusion of all Quezon City voters in the plebiscite, indicated the non-existence of such negative issues. Moreover, the plebiscite contemplated in R.A. No. 8535 would give all concerned persons the opportunity to raise those issues before voting on the cityhood of Novaliches.
• Constitutional Amendment: The ordinance appended to the Constitution merely apportions the seats of the House of Representatives to the different legislative districts in the country. It nowhere provides that Metro Manila shall forever be composed of only 17 cities and municipalities. A too literal reading of the ordinance would result in erroneous interpretation. Thus, the creation of the City of Novaliches would not result in a prohibited amendment of the Constitution.
• Presumption of Constitutionality and Burden of Proof: All presumptions are indulged in favor of constitutionality. One who attacks a statute must prove its invalidity beyond a reasonable doubt. A law may work hardship without being unconstitutional; if any reasonable basis may be conceived to support the statute, it will be upheld; the challenger must negate all possible bases; courts are not concerned with the wisdom, justice, policy, or expediency of a statute; and a liberal interpretation of the Constitution in favor of the constitutionality of legislation should be adopted. Petitioner failed to present clear and convincing proof to defeat the presumption of constitutionality enjoyed by R.A. No. 8535 and did not convince the Court with substantial and persuasive legal reasons for the reliefs sought.

• Presumption of Constitutionality — Every statute is presumed valid, and every law is presumed to have passed through regular congressional processes. One who attacks a statute must prove its invalidity beyond a reasonable doubt, and mere allegations cannot substitute for proof. The Court applied this doctrine in dismissing the petition because Samson failed to present clear and convincing evidence that R.A. No. 8535 did not comply with the Local Government Code.
• Requisites for Creation of a City under the Local Government Code — Under Article 11 of the Implementing Rules, a city must have an average annual income of not less than P20,000,000.00 for the immediately preceding two consecutive years based on 1991 constant prices, as certified by the Department of Finance, and either a population of not less than 150,000 inhabitants, as certified by the National Statistics Office, or a contiguous land area of at least 100 square kilometers, as certified by the Land Management Bureau. Compliance with income and either population or land area is sufficient. The Court found the income estimate of P26,952,128.26 and population estimate of 347,310 sufficient.
• Seat of Government May Be Established After Creation — Although Section 11(a) of the Local Government Code requires the law creating a local government unit to specify the seat of government, the omission is not fatal because Section 12 of the Code allows the city to establish a government center after creation, and such site may serve as the seat of government. The Court applied this to uphold R.A. No. 8535 despite its failure to specify a seat of government.
• No Prohibited Constitutional Amendment — The ordinance appended to the Constitution merely apportions seats in the House of Representatives among legislative districts and does not freeze the composition of Metro Manila at 17 cities and municipalities. The Court held that the creation of the City of Novaliches did not amend the Constitution.
• Official Statements as Certifications — Official statements made by government representatives in their official capacity, under oath, and in open legislative session may serve the same purpose as the written certifications required by law, especially where they provide the relevant income, population, and land area data. The Court relied on the estimates given during the Senate hearings.
• Notice to the Mother Local Government Unit — The requirement to furnish the mother local government unit a copy of the petition for creation is intended to inform it and enable it to formulate comments and recommendations; failure to comply does not invalidate the law where the local council was aware of the petition and the matter was widely publicized. The Court applied this to the Quezon City Council.

• "All presumptions are indulged in favor of constitutionality; one who attacks a statute, alleging unconstitutionality must prove its invalidity beyond a reasonable doubt; that a law may work hardship does not render it unconstitutional; that if any reasonable basis may be conceived which supports the statute, it will be upheld, and the challenger must negate all possible bases; that the courts are not concerned with the wisdom, justice, policy, or expediency of a statute; and that a liberal interpretation of the constitution in favor of the constitutionality of legislation should be adopted." — This passage states the presumption of constitutionality and the heavy burden on a challenger, which the Court used to reject Samson’s allegations of noncompliance.
• "Every statute is presumed valid. Every law is presumed to have passed through regular congressional processes. A person asserting the contrary has the burden of proving his allegations clearly and unmistakably." — This formulation anchors the Court’s ruling that Samson’s unsupported claim that Congress did not receive the required certifications could not overcome the presumption of regularity.
• "Indeed, a reading of R.A. No. 8535 will readily show that it does not provide for a seat of government. However, this omission, to our mind, is not as fatal to the validity of R.A. No. 8535 as petitioner makes it to be." — This passage introduces the Court’s holding that the absence of a seat of government in the charter is cured by the Local Government Code provision allowing the city to establish a government center after creation.
• "The proposed creation of the City of Novaliches will in no way result in a prohibited amendment of the Constitution, contrary to petitioner’s contention." — This passage disposes of the constitutional-amendment challenge by holding that the appended ordinance merely apportions House seats and does not freeze the composition of Metro Manila.

• Victoriano vs. Elizalde Rope Workers’ Union, 59 SCRA 54 (1974) — Cited as the controlling precedent on the presumption of constitutionality, the burden of proving invalidity beyond a reasonable doubt, and the rule that courts are not concerned with the wisdom, justice, policy, or expediency of a statute.
• Basco vs. PAGCOR, 197 SCRA 52, 59 (1991) — Cited for the rule that every statute is presumed valid.
• Peralta vs. COMELEC, 82 SCRA 30 (1978) — Cited together with Basco for the rule that every statute is presumed valid.
• Tobias vs. Abalos, 239 SCRA 106, 111 (1994) — Cited for the rule that every law is presumed to have passed through regular congressional processes.

• Section 7, Local Government Code of 1991 — Requires the creation or conversion of a local government unit to be based on verifiable indicators of viability and projected capacity to provide services, namely income, population, and land area, with compliance attested to by the Department of Finance, National Statistics Office, and Land Management Bureau. The Court found petitioner failed to prove noncompliance with these indicators.
• Article 11, Rules and Regulations Implementing the Local Government Code — Sets the requisites for creation of a city: average annual income of not less than P20,000,000.00 for the immediately preceding two consecutive years based on 1991 constant prices, as certified by the Department of Finance; and population of not less than 150,000 inhabitants, as certified by the National Statistics Office, or land area of at least 100 square kilometers, as certified by the Land Management Bureau. It also provides that creation shall not reduce the original local government unit below prescribed minimums and that expenses shall be borne by the petitioners. The Court relied on the income and population estimates presented during the Senate hearings.
• Section 11(a), Local Government Code of 1991 — Requires the law or ordinance creating or merging local government units to specify the seat of government from where governmental and corporate services shall be delivered. The Court found R.A. No. 8535 omitted this, but held the omission not fatal.
• Section 12, Local Government Code of 1991 — Directs provinces, cities, and municipalities to endeavor to establish a government center where offices and agencies may be located. The Court held that such a site can serve as the seat of government, allowing the City of Novaliches to establish one after creation.
• Section 54, Republic Act No. 8535 — Provides that the Local Government Code of 1991 and other applicable laws shall govern the City of Novaliches insofar as they are not inconsistent with R.A. No. 8535. The Court used this provision to apply Section 12 of the Code to the proposed city.
• Section 450(a), Local Government Code of 1991 — Cited by petitioner as part of the criteria for city creation regarding income, population, land area, seat of government, and adverse effect on Quezon City. The Court rejected the challenge for lack of proof.
• Ordinance appended to the Constitution — Apportions the seats of the House of Representatives to the different legislative districts. The Court held it does not provide that Metro Manila shall forever be composed of only 17 cities and municipalities and thus does not bar the creation of the City of Novaliches.

Davide, Jr., C.J., Bellosillo, Melo, Puno, Vitug, Kapunan, Mendoza, Purisima, Pardo, Buena, Gonzaga-Reyes, and Ynares-Santiago, JJ., concur. Panganiban, J., in the result.