SC upholds law extending barangay, SK officials’ terms

The Supreme Court has affirmed the constitutionality of the law that amended the terms of office of barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (BSK) officials and deferred the elections to another two years.

Then Associate Justice Rodil Zalameda wrote the Oct. 14 decision, one of his last ponencias before taking over the Supreme Court as Chief Justice.

READ: SC affirms 5-year term for barangay, SK execs; next polls in Nov. 2028

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In a 33-page decision by the en banc, the high tribunal denied the petition filed by election lawyer Romulo Macalintal for lack of merit in challenging the enactment of Republic Act No. 12326, which reset once again the BSK elections (BSKE) originally slated on Nov. 2 this year to Nov. 13, 2028.

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The new law also extended the term of office of BSK officials to five years for up to two consecutive terms. This means that an elected barangay or SK official may hold office for up to a total of 10 straight years.

‘Reasonable’

In his petition, Macalintal said the postponement was done “under the guise of fixing” the term of office of BSK officials just after it was amended last year from three years to four years through another law, Republic Act No. 12232.

The high court noted that RA 12326 is a law fixing the terms of BSK officials and not a law postponing the polls. But it noted that this does not mean that the Congress’ power to fix terms of office is without limit.

It dismissed Macalintal’s argument countering this by showing news reports and media briefings that highlight the postponement of BSKE.

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But the high tribunal stressed that these “do not alter the character of the law.”

“What a law is depends on what it says and what it principally seeks to accomplish, not on how it is described in the press,” it added.

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The high court also ruled that the new BSKE date is “reasonable and not unduly long.”

It also said that RA 12326 adheres to substantive due process as it involves legitimate government objectives, such as continuity of barangay programs.

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The extended term of incumbent BSK officials does not mean they are reappointed or given a new term as they are serving in a hold-over capacity. /jpv