Montuerto v. Ty
REITERATIONFacts
The Antecedents: On March 17, 1992, Melanie P. Montuerto was issued a permanent appointment as Municipal Budget Officer of Almeria, Biliran, which was approved by the Civil Service Commission (CSC). On January 14, 2002, the Sangguniang Bayan (SB) of Almeria passed a resolution requesting the CSC to revoke Montuerto's appointment due to the alleged failure to secure the SB's concurrence. Procedural History: The CSC Regional Office VIII recalled Montuerto's appointment for lack of SB concurrence. Montuerto submitted a Joint-Affidavit from SB members claiming verbal concurrence and inadvertent omission in the minutes. The SB Secretary certified that no record showed the appointment was submitted for concurrence. The CSC Regional Office denied Montuerto's motion for reconsideration and affirmed the recall. The CSC Central Office dismissed Montuerto's appeal and affirmed the recall. Montuerto's motion for reconsideration was denied. Subsequently, the Municipal Mayor issued an order detailing Montuerto to a project and removing her allowances, and later issued a memorandum terminating her services based on the CSC resolution. Montuerto filed a Petition for Review with the Court of Appeals (CA), which affirmed the CSC's resolution. The present petition seeks review of the CA's decision. The Petition: Petitioner Melanie P. Montuerto filed a Petition for Review on Certiorari under Rule 45 of the Rules of Civil Procedure, assailing the CA's decision. The sole issue raised was whether her appointment as Municipal Budget Officer, despite lacking written Sangguniang Bayan concurrence but having been approved by the CSC and served for nearly ten years, could still be revoked by the CSC.
Issue(s)
Whether the appointment of petitioner as Municipal Budget Officer, without the written concurrence of the Sangguniang Bayan, but duly approved by the CSC and after the appointee had served as such for almost ten years without interruption, can still be revoked by the Commission.
Ruling
The Supreme Court denied the petition for review on certiorari for lack of merit. The Court affirmed the decision of the Court of Appeals, which upheld the resolution of the Civil Service Commission recalling the appointment of Melanie P. Montuerto as Municipal Budget Officer.
Ratio Decidendi
On the Issue of Sangguniang Bayan Concurrence: The Court held that the appointment of a Municipal Budget Officer, as a head of a municipal department, requires the concurrence of the majority of all Sangguniang Bayan members, pursuant to Section 443(a) and (d) of Republic Act No. 7160, the Local Government Code. The records clearly indicated that petitioner's appointment was never submitted to the Sangguniang Bayan for concurrence, or if it was, no such concurrence was obtained. The Court emphasized that factual findings of quasi-judicial agencies, especially when affirmed by the Court of Appeals, are considered final and conclusive and are not subject to review by the Supreme Court, absent any exceptions. The Court reiterated that it is not a trier of facts and will generally refrain from re-weighing evidence already passed upon by lower tribunals. The Court further clarified that any alleged verbal concurrence by the Sangguniang Bayan, as claimed by the petitioner, is not the concurrence envisioned by law. As a legislative body, the Sangguniang Bayan must act through a formal resolution or ordinance to express its concurrence. Without such a formal act, the appointment failed to comply with the mandatory requirement of the law. Consequently, petitioner acquired no legal title to the Office of Municipal Budget Officer, even with ten years of service, because the appointment was fundamentally invalid from the start. Therefore, the Civil Service Commission possessed the authority to recall the appointment.
Main Doctrine
The appointment of a Municipal Budget Officer, a department head in a municipal government, necessitates the concurrence of the majority of all members of the Sangguniang Bayan, as stipulated in Section 443(a) and (d) of Republic Act No. 7160. An appointment lacking this mandatory concurrence is invalid ab initio, even if it was initially approved by the Civil Service Commission and the appointee has served for an extended period. The Sangguniang Bayan, as a legislative body, must formally express its concurrence through a resolution or ordinance, and verbal concurrence is insufficient.