04/02/2020
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enforcement of the demolition orders issued by the City Mayor, the petition traced
private respondents' ancestry to Molintas and Gumangan and asserted their
possession, occupation and utilization of their ancestral lands. The petition also
alleged that private respondents' claim over these lands had been recognized by
Proclamation No. 15 which mentions the names of Molintas and Gumangan as
having claims over portions of the Busol Forest Reservation.[15]
Clearly then, the allegations in the petition, which axiomatically determine the
nature of the action and the jurisdiction of a particular tribunal,[16] squarely qualify
it as a "dispute(s) or controversy(s) over ancestral lands/domains of ICCs/IPs"
within the original and exclusive jurisdiction of the NCIP-RHO.
The IPRA, furthermore, endows the NCIP with the power to issue temporary
restraining orders and writs of injunction. Sec. 69 thereof states:
Sec. 69. Quasi-Judicial Powers of the NCIP.--The NCIP shall have the
power and authority:
a) To promulgate rules and regulations governing the hearing and
disposition of cases filed before it as well as those pertaining to its
internal functions and such rules and regulations as may be necessary to
carry out the purposes of this Act;
b) To administer oaths, summon the parties to a controversy, issue
subpoenas requiring the attendance and testimony of witnesses or the
production of such books, papers, contracts, records, agreements, and
other document of similar nature as may be material to a just
determination of the matter under investigation or hearing conducted in
pursuance of this Act;
c) To hold any person in contempt, directly or indirectly, and impose
appropriate penalties therefor; and
d) To enjoin any or all acts involving or arising from any case
pending before it which, if not restrained forthwith, may cause
grave or irreparable damage to any of the parties to the case or
seriously affect social or economic activity. [Emphasis supplied]
NCIP Administrative Circular No. 1-03 echoes the above-quoted provision in Sec. 82,
Rule XV, which provides:
Sec. 82. Preliminary Injunction and Temporary Restraining Order.--A writ
of preliminary injunction or restraining order may be granted by the
Commission pursuant to the provisions of Sections 59 and 69 of R.A.
[No.] 8371 when it is established, on the basis of sworn allegations in a
petition, that the acts complained of involving or arising from any case, if
not restrained forthwith, may cause grave or irreparable damage or injury
to any of the parties, or seriously affect social or economic activity. This
power may also be exercised by RHOs in cases pending before them in
order to preserve the rights of the parties.
As can be gleaned from the foregoing provisions, the NCIP may issue temporary
restraining orders and writs of injunction without any prohibition against the
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