4/7/2021 E-Library - Information At Your Fingertips: Printer Friendly distraining, or selling any property of taxpayers for the satisfaction of their tax liabilities are immediately executory, and their enforcement is not to be suspended by any appeals thereof to the Court of Tax Appeals unless "in the opinion of the Court [of Tax Appeals] the collection by the Bureau of Internal Revenue or the Commissioner of Customs may jeopardize the interest of the Government and/or the taxpayer," in which case the Court of Tax Appeals "at any stage of the proceeding may suspend the said collection and require the taxpayer either to deposit the amount claimed or to file a surety bond for not more than double the amount." In view of the foregoing, the RTC not only grossly erred in giving due course to the petition for declaratory relief, and in ultimately deciding to permanently enjoin the enforcement of the specified provisions of the NIRC against the respondent, but even worse acted without jurisdiction. (Emphasis supplied) Tambunting, Jr. v. Sumabat,[46] explained the nature of a petition for declaratory relief, thus: An action for declaratory relief should be filed by a person interested under a deed, will, contract or other written instrument, and whose rights are affected by a statute, executive order, regulation or ordinance before breach or violation thereof. The purpose of the action is to secure an authoritative statement of the rights and obligations of the parties under a statute, deed, contract, etc. for their guidance in its enforcement or compliance and not to settle issues arising from its alleged breach. It may be entertained only before the breach or violation of the statute, deed, contract, etc. to which it refers. Where the law or contract has already been contravened prior to the filing of an action for declaratory relief, the court can no longer assume jurisdiction over the action. In other words, a court has no more jurisdiction over an action for declaratory relief if its subject, i.e., the statute, deed, contract, etc., has already been infringed or transgressed before the institution of the action. Under such circumstances, inasmuch as a cause of action has already accrued in favor of one or the other party, there is nothing more for the court to explain or clarify short of a judgment or final order. Verily, since there is no actual case involved in a petition for declaratory relief, it cannot be the proper vehicle to invoke the power of judicial review to declare a statute as invalid or unconstitutional. As decreed in DOTR v. PPSTA,[47] the proper remedy is certiorari or prohibition, thus: The Petition for Declaratory Relief is not the proper remedy One of the requisites for an action for declaratory relief is that it must be filed before any breach or violation of an obligation. Section 1, Rule 63 of the Rules of Court states, thus: https://elibrary.judiciary.gov.ph/thebookshelf/showdocsfriendly/1/65912 13/25