6/7/2020
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Sovereignty and General Administration, Book II with the Distribution of
Powers of the three branches of Government, Book III on the Office of the
President, Book IV on the Executive Branch, Book V on the Constitutional
Commissions, Book VI on National Government Budgeting, and Book VII on
Administrative Procedure. These Books contain provisions on the
organization, powers and general administration of the executive, legislative
and judicial branches of government, the organization and administration of
departments, bureaus and offices under the executive branch, the
organization and functions of the Constitutional Commissions and other
constitutional bodies, the rules on the national government budget, as well
as guidelines for the exercise by administrative agencies of quasi-legislative
and quasi-judicial powers. The Code covers both the internal administration
of government, i.e., internal organization, personnel and recruitment,
supervision and discipline, and the effects of the functions performed by
administrative officials on private individuals or parties outside government.
[21] (Citations omitted)
Indeed, EO 292 is a law of general application.[22] Pushed to the hilt, the argument of
respondent will grant carte blanche to the Executive in promulgating rules that curtail
the enjoyment of constitutional rights even without the sanction of Congress. To repeat,
the Executive is limited to executing the law. It cannot make, amend or repeal a law,
much less a constitutional provision.
For the same reason, in the Court's jurisprudence concerning the overseas travel of
court personnel during their approved leaves of absence and with no pending criminal
case before any court, I have consistently maintained that only a law, not
administrative rules, can authorize the Court to impose administrative sanctions for the
employee's failure to obtain a travel permit:
Although the constitutional right to travel is not absolute, it can only be
restricted in the interest of national security, public safety, or public health,
as may be provided by law. As held in Silverio v. Court of Appeals:
Article III, Section 6 of the 1987 Constitution should be
interpreted to mean that while the liberty of travel may be
impaired even without court order, the appropriate executive
officers or administrative authorities are not armed with arbitrary
discretion to impose limitations. They can impose limits only on
the basis of "national security, public safety, or public health" and
"as may be provided by law," a limitive phrase which did not
appear in the 1973 text x x x. Apparently, the phraseology in the
1987 Constitution was a reaction to the ban on international
travel imposed under the previous regime when there was a
Travel Processing Center, which issued certificates of eligibility to
travel upon application of an interested party x x x.
The constitutional right to travel cannot be impaired without due process of
law. Here, due process of law requires the existence of a law regulating
travel abroad, in the interest of national security, public safety or public
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