Law on Public Officers Flashcards
What is the nature of a public office?
A public office is not property within the sense of the constitutional guaranties of due process of law, but is a public trust or agency.
There is no such as a vested interest or an estate in an office, or even an absolute right to hold office.
What is the difference between a public officer and an employee?
Officer refers to a person whose duties, not being of a clerical or manual nature, involves the exercise of discretion in the performance of the functions of the government.
Employee on the other hand, includes any person in the service of the government or any of its divisions, subdivisions, instrumentality.
Is a private individual hired on a contractual basis for a government undertaking, a public officer?
Yes, a private individual hired on a contractual basis for a government undertaking, falls under the non-career service category of the Civil Service, and thus, is a public officer.
What are the jurisdiction of the Sandiganbayan?
Sandiganbayan has jurisdiction over Presidents, directors or trustees, or managers of government-owned or controlled corporations, state universities, or education institutions or foundations.
What if a private individual is charged with public officers or employees, what is the rule?
In case private individuals are charged as co-principals, accomplices, or accessories with public officers or employees, including those employed in government-owned or controlled corporations, they shall be tried jointly with said public officers and employees.
Can the COMELEC annul a proclamation?
Election cases must be first heard and decided by the COMELEC, but they do not have the power to partially or totally annul a proclamation or suspend the effects of a proclamation without notice and hearing.
What is the rule regarding compensation?
Compensation is not part of the office but merely incidental thereto. It is sometimes expressly provided that certain officers shall received no compensation, and a law creating an office without any provisions for compensation may carry with it the implication that the services are to be rendered gratuitously.
What is the difference between appointment and designation?
Appointment is defined as the selection, by the authority vested with the power, of an individual who is to exercise the functions of a given office.
Designation on the other hand, connotes merely the imposition by law of additional duties on an incumbent official.
Appointment is executive, while designation is legislative. The holding of the office in a designation is only in a temporary capacity, and may be replaced at will by the appointing authority.
What are the government officials to be nominated by the President?
The President shall nominate and with the consent of the Commission on Appointments, appoint the head of the executive departments, ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, or officers of the armed forces from the rank of colonel or naval captain, and other officers whose appointments are vested in him by the Constitution.
What is the rule in the doctrine of implication with regards to appointments by the President?
The power to appoint carries with it the power to remove, thus, the general rule is that all officers appointed by the President are also removable by him.
Except to when the law expressly provides others, that is when the power to remove is expressly vested in an officer or authority other than the President.
Such as:
(a) Members of the Supreme Court and lower courts, appointed by President, removed by impeachment by Congress. Judges of lower courts, Supreme Court has authority.
(b) Chairpersons and Commissioners of Constitutional Commissions, appointed by President, but removed by impeachment by Ombudsman
Explain briefly the power to appoint by the President that do not need the consent of the Civil Service Commission.
(a) Other officers of the government whose appointments are provided by law
(b) Whom the President may be authorized by law to appoint
(c) Officers lower in rank whose appointments may be vested by Congress to the President.
What are the steps in the appointment process?
(a) Nomination by the President
(b) Confirmation by the Commission on Appointment
(c) Issuance of the Commission
(d) Acceptance by the Appointee
What are the difference between elective officials and appointive officials?
Elective officials occupy their office by virtue of the mandate of the electorate. Appointive officials on the other hand, hold their office by virtue of their designation thereto by an appointing authority.
What is the rule regarding the vacancy of a position?
No person, no matter how qualified and eligible he is for a certain position may be appointed to an office which is not vacant. There can be no appointment to an office which is not vacant.
The incumbent must first be legally removed, or his appointment validly terminated before one could validly installed to succeed him.
What is a de facto officer? What are its elements?
A de facto officer is an officer holding a colorable right or title to the office accompanied by possession. To constitute a de facto officer, there must be an office having a de facto existence, or at least one recognized by law and the claimant must be in actual possession of the office under color of title or authority.
Elements thereto is that:
(a) There must be a de jure office
(b) There must be a colorable right or general acquiescence by the public
(c) There must be actual physical possession of the office in good faith
