WHEREFORE, based on the foregoing premises, the instant petition is hereby DENIED for lack of
merit. Accordingly, the assailed Temporary Protection Order dated May 23, 2002 (sic) issued by the
Regional Trial Court of Imus, Cavite, Branch 22 in Civil Case No. 0464-05 is UPHELD.10
In so ruling, the CA found that the petition filed by respondent under RA 9262 is still pending before
the RTC; thus, the factual matters raised therein could not be passed upon in the petition for
certiorari filed with it. The CA noted that during the pendency of the herein proceedings, petitioner
filed an urgent motion to quash warrant issued by the RTC and which matter could not also be a
subject of this petition which assails the TPO dated May 23, 2005 and that the motion to quash
should have been filed with the RTC.
The CA found that the TPO dated May 23, 2005 was validly issued by the RTC and found no grave
abuse of discretion in the issuance thereof as the same were in complete accord with the provision
of RA 9262.
As to petitioner's argument that there was no basis for the issuance of the TPO, considering that the
provision authorizing such issuance is unconstitutional, the CA ruled that since the matter raised
herein was the RTC’s alleged grave abuse of discretion in issuing the TPO, such matter could be
resolved without having to rule on the constitutionality of RA 9262 and its provisions. And that the
requisites that the constitutionality of the law in question be the very lis mota of the case was absent.
Dissatisfied, petitioner files the instant petition raising the following issues:
I
THE HONORABLE COURT OF APPEALS WITH DUE RESPECT SERIOUSLY ERRED IN
HOLDING AND FINDING IN A MANNER CONTRARY TO ESTABLISHED RULES AND
JURISPRUDENCE THAT PUBLIC RESPONDENT COMMITTED NO GRAVE ABUSE OF
DISCRETION WHEN THE LATTER ISSUED THE TEMPORARY PROTECTIVE ORDER
(TPO) DATED 23 MAY 2005 WITHOUT OBSERVING DUE PROCESS OF LAW AND
CONSIDERATIONS OF JUSTICE AND BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS.
II
THE HONORABLE COURT OF APPEALS IN REFUSING TO RULE ON THE
CONSTITUTIONALITY OF THE PROVISIONS OF RA 9262 HAS DECIDED THE CASE IN
A MANNER NOT IN ACCORD WITH ESTABLISHED LAWS AND JURISPRUDENCE
CONSIDERING THAT CONTRARY TO ITS FINDINGS THE CONSTITUTIONALITY OF
THE SAID LAW IS THE LIS MOTA OF THE CASE.11
Petitioner claims that contrary to the stance of the CA in not deciding the issue of the constitutionality
of RA 9262, the issue presented is the very lis mota in the instant case.
The issue of constitutionality of RA 9262 was raised by petitioner in his Comment to respondent's
Petition with Urgent Motion to Lift TPO dated May 23, 2005 filed with the RTC. However, without
awaiting for the resolution of the same, petitioner filed a petition for certiorari with the CA assailing
the TPO issued for violating the due process clause of the Constitution. Contrary to the CA's finding
that the matter raised in the petition filed with it was the RTC’s alleged grave abuse of discretion in
issuing the TPO which could be resolved without having to rule on the constitutionality of RA 9262
and its provisions, we find that since petitioner is assailing the validity of RA 9262 wherein
respondent's right to a protection order is based upon, the constitutionality of the said law must first
be decided upon. After all, the alleged unconstitutionality of RA 9262 is, for all intents and purposes,