04/02/2020
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in times of emergency, but is also tasked with extraordinary powers in
times of emergency, but is also tasked with attending to the day-to-day
problems of maintaining peace and order and ensuring domestic
tranquility in times when no foreign foe appears on the horizon. Wide
discretion, within the bounds of law, in fulfilling presidential duties in
times of peace is not in any way diminished by the relative want of an
emergency specified in the commander-in-chief provision. For in making
the President commander-in-chief the enumeration of powers that follow
cannot be said to exclude the President's exercising as Commander-inChief powers short of the calling of the armed forces, or suspending the
privilege of the writ of habeas corpus or declaring martial law, in order to
keep the peace, and maintain public order and security.
Undoubtedly, then, the President has power to negotiate peace with the MILF, and to
determine in what form and manner the peace process should be conducted.
In the exercise of this power, the President issued Executive Order No. 3, where she
mapped out the principles to be followed in the comprehensive peace process: (a)
community-based and defined by all Filipinos as one community, (b) a new social
compact establishing a genuinely pluralistic society, and (c) a principled and peaceful
resolution to the internal armed conflicts.[37] In Section 4 thereof, the president
identified the 6 paths to peace, with processes being interrelated and not mutually
exclusive, and must be pursued simultaneously in a coordinated and integrated
fashion: (a) pursuit of social, economic and political reforms, (b) consensus-building
and empowerment for peace, (c) peaceful, negotiated settlement with the different
rebel groups, (d) programs for the reconciliation, reintegration into mainstream
society and rehabilitation, (e) addressing concerns arising from continuing armed
hostilities, and (f) building and nurturing a climate conducive to peace.
Executive Order No. 3, together with the Memorandum of Instructions of March 1,
2001 and the Memorandum of Instructions of September 8, 2003, constitutes the
mandate of the GRP Peace panel. It was within the parameters of this mandate that
the GRP Peace panel was to negotiate with the MILF and arrive at a Comprehensive
Peace Agreement. It was pursuant to these strictures that the MOA-AD was crafted,
initialed and scheduled for signing.
Even as the petitioners and petitioners-in-intervention roundly condemn the MOAAD, as currently worded, to have violated constitutional and statutory principles and assail the GRP Peace Panel for having acted with grave abuse of discretion
because of its failure to abide by its mandate - it is noteworthy they do not raise any
question about the validity of Executive Order No. 3 and the Instructions issued by
the President.
Considering the events that have supervened since the filing of the initial petition
and the issuance by this Court of a TRO, it is suggested that the angle of vision for
the discussion of the substantive issues in this case should be from the perspective
of the relief/s that this Court can grant the parties, taking into account their
respective prayers. These are:
1. Mandamus.
a) Three petitions and two petitions-in-intervention praying for a writ of
elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/47263
199/203
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