ROGLLIO Z. BAGABUYO v.

COMMISSION ON LLLC1IONS
G.R. No. J76970, 08 December 2008, LN BANC, (Brion, J.)

Cagayav ae Oro City potiticatty revaiv. a .ivgte vvit ava it. aavivi.tratiov i. vot airiaea atovg territoriat tive..
t. territory revaiv. covptetety rbote ava ivtact: tbere i. ovty tbe aaaitiov ot avotber tegi.tatire ai.trict ava tbe aetiveatiov
ot tbe city ivto tro ai.trict. tor pvrpo.e. ot repre.evtatiov iv tbe ov.e ot Repre.evtatire.. )bv.. .rticte `. ectiov ]0 ot
tbe Cov.titvtiov aoe. vot cove ivto ptay ava vo ptebi.cite i. vece..ary to ratiaty apportiov Cagayav ae Oro City ivto tro
ai.trict..

Republic Act R.A., 931. also known as An Act Proiding or the Apportionment o the Lone
Legislatie District o the (itv o (agavan De Oro" was passed. increasing (agavan de Oro's legislatie
district rom one to two. Lectielv. (agavan de Oro's oters would be categorized as belonging to
either the irst or second district according to their place o residence. Lach district's constituents would
elect one representatie to (ongress and eight members o the avggvviavg Pavgtvvg.oa. 1he (ommission
on Llections (OMLLL(, thereater promulgated Resolution No. 83. implementing the said law.
Petitioner Rogelio Z. Bagabuvo iled with the Supreme (ourt petition or certiorari. prohibition. and
mandamus. with a praver or the issuance o a temporarv restraining order and a writ o preliminarv
injunction to preent the (OMLLL( rom implementing Resolution No. 83 on the grounds that the
law it implements is unconstitutional.

According to Bagabuvo. the (OMLLL( cannot implement Resolution No. 83 without
proiding or the rules. regulations and guidelines or the conduct o a plebiscite. which is necessarv in
the diision or conersion o a local goernment unit. On the other hand. respondent (OMLLL( raised
as deenses. among others. that R.A. 931 merelv increased the representation o (agavan de Oro (itv in
the louse o Representaties and avggvviavg Pavgtvvg.oa pursuant to Section 5. Article VI o the 198
(onstitution. and that no creation. diision. merger. abolition or substantial alteration o boundaries o a
proince. citv. municipalitv. or baravgay was eected bv the disputed statute and thereore cannot be
bound bv the criteria under Section 10. Article X o the 198 (onstitution. Lastlv. no plebiscite is
required as the said law did not bring about anv change in (agavan de Oro`s territorv. population and
income classiication.

ISSUL:

\hether or not a plebiscite is required or the implementation o a law which proides or the
apportionment o a legislatie district

HLLD:

Petition DISMISSLD.
1he petitioner insists that R.A. No. 931 conerts and diides the (itv o (agavan de Oro as a
local goernment unit. and does not merelv proide or the (itv`s legislatie apportionment. 1his
argument essentiallv proceeds rom a misunderstanding o the constitutional concepts o apportionment
o legislatie districts and diision o local goernment units.
Legislatie apportionment is deined bv Black`s Law Dictionarv as tbe aetervivatiov ot tbe vvvber ot
repre.evtatire. rbicb a tate. covvty or otber .vbairi.iov vay .eva to a tegi.tatire boay. It is tbe attocatiov ot .eat. iv a
tegi.tatire boay iv proportiov to tbe popvtatiov: tbe ararivg ot rotivg ai.trict tive. .o a. to eqvati.e popvtatiov ava rotivg
porer avovg tbe ai.trict.. Reapportionment. on the other hand. is the reatigvvevt or cbavge iv tegi.tatire
ai.trict. brovgbt abovt by cbavge. iv popvtatiov ava vavaatea by tbe cov.titvtiovat reqvirevevt ot eqvatity ot
repre.evtatiov.
Article VI entitled Legislatie Department, o the 198 (onstitution lavs down the rules on
legislatie apportionment under its Section 5 which proides:
Sec. 51,. 1, 1he louse o Representaties shall be composed o not more than two
hundred itv members unless otherwise ixed bv law. who shall be elected rom legislatie districts
apportioned among the proinces. cities. and the Metropolitan Manila area in accordance with the
number o their respectie inhabitants. and on the basis o a uniorm and progressie ratio. and those
who. as proided bv law. shall be elected through a partv-list svstem o registered national. regional
and sectoral parties or organizations.

x x x

3, Lach legislatie district shall comprise. as ar as practicable. continuous. compact. and
adjacent territorv. Lach citv with a population o at least two hundred itv thousand. or each
proince. shall hae at least one representatie.

4, \ithin three vears ollowing the return o eerv census. the (ongress shall make a
reapportionment o legislatie districts based on the standards proided in this section.
Separatelv rom the legislatie districts that legal apportionment or reapportionment speaks o.
are the local goernment units historicallv and genericallv reerred to as municipal corporations`, that
the (onstitution itsel classiied into proinces. cities. municipalities and baravgay.. In its strict and
proper sense. a municipalitv has been deined as a bodv politic and corporate constituted bv the
incorporation o the inhabitants o a citv or town or the purpose o local goernment thereo.` 1he
creation. diision. merger. abolition or alteration o boundarv o local goernment units. i.e.. o
proinces. cities. municipalities. and baravgay.. are coered bv the Article on Local Goernment Article
X,. Section 10 o this Article proides:
No proince. citv. municipalitv. or baravgay mav be created. diided. merged. abolished. or its
boundarv substantiallv altered. except in accordance with the criteria established in the local
goernment code and subject to approal bv a majoritv o the otes cast in a plebiscite in the political
unit directlv aected.
Under both Article VI. Section 5. and Article X. Section 10 o the (onstitution. the authoritv to
act has been ested in the Legislature. 1he Legislature undertakes the apportionment and
reapportionment o legislatie districts. and likewise acts on local goernment units bv setting the
standards or their creation. diision. merger. abolition and alteration o boundaries and bv actuallv
creating. diiding. merging. abolishing local goernment units and altering their boundaries through
legislation. Other than this. not much commonalitv exists between the two proisions since thev are
inherentlv dierent although thev interace and relate with one another.
1he concern that leaps rom the text o Article VI. Section 5 is political representation and the
means to make a legislatie district suicientlv represented so that the people can be eectielv heard.
As aboe stated. the aim o legislatie apportionment is to equalize population and oting power among
districts.` lence. emphasis is gien to the number o people represented: the uniorm and progressie
ratio to be obsered among the representatie districts: and accessibilitv and commonalitv o interests in
terms o each district being. as ar as practicable. continuous. compact and adjacent territorv. In terms o
the people represented. eerv citv with at least 250.000 people and eerv proince irrespectie o
population, is entitled to one representatie. In this sense. legislatie districts. on the one hand. and
proinces and cities. on the other. relate and interace with each other. 1o ensure continued adherence
to the required standards o apportionment. Section 54, speciicallv mandates reapportionment as soon
as the gien standards are met.
In contrast with the equal representation objectie o Article VI. Section 5. Article X. Section 10
expresslv speaks o how local goernment units mav be created. diided. merged. abolished. or its
boundarv substantiallv altered.` Its concern is the commencement. the termination. and the
modiication o local goernment units` corporate existence and territorial coerage: and it speaks o two
speciic standards that must be obsered in implementing this concern. namelv. the criteria established in
the local goernment code and the approal bv a majoritv o the otes cast in a plebiscite in the political
units directlv aected. Under the Local Goernment (ode R.A. No. 160, passed in 1991. the criteria
o income. population and land area are speciied as eriiable indicators o iabilitv and capacitv to
proide serices. 1he diision or merger o existing units must complv with the same requirements
since a new local goernment unit will come into being,. proided that a diision shall not reduce the
income. population. or land area o the unit aected to less than the minimum requirement prescribed in
the (ode.
A pronounced distinction between Article VI. Section 5 and. Article X. Section 10 is on the
requirement o a plebiscite. 1he (onstitution and the Local Goernment (ode expresslv require a
plebiscite to carrv out anv creation. diision. merger. abolition or alteration o boundarv o a local
goernment unit. v covtra.t. vo ptebi.cite reqvirevevt ei.t. vvaer tbe apportiovvevt or reapportiovvevt prori.iov.
R.A. No. 931 is. on its ace. purelv and simplv a reapportionment legislation passed in
accordance with the authoritv granted to (ongress under Article VI. Section 54, o the (onstitution. Its
core proision - Section 1 - proides:

SL(1ION 1. Legislatie Districts. - 1he lone legislatie district o the (itv o (agavan de
Oro is herebv apportioned to commence in the next national elections ater the eectiitv o this Act.
lenceorth. barangavs Bonbon. Bavabas. Kauswagan. (armen. Patag. Bulua. Iponan. Baikingon. San
Simon. Pagatpat. (anitoan. Balulang. Lumbia. Pagalungan. 1agpangi. 1aglimao. 1uburan. Pigsag-an.
1umpagon. Bavanga. Mambuava. Dansulihon. 1ignapoloan and Bisigan shall comprise the irst
district while barangavs Macabalan. Puntod. (onsolacion. (amaman-an. Nazareth. Macansandig.
Indahag. Lapasan. Gusa. (ugman. lS (atanico. 1ablon. Agusan. Puerto. Bugo and Balubal and all
urban barangavs rom Barangav 1 to Barangav 40 shall comprise the second district.
Under these wordings. no diision o (agavan de Oro (itv as a political and corporate entitv
takes place or is mandated. (agavan de Oro (itv politicallv remains a single unit and its administration is
not diided along territorial lines. Its territorv remains completelv whole and intact: there is onlv the
addition o another legislatie district and the delineation o the citv into two districts or purposes o
representation in the louse o Representaties. 1hus. Article X. Section 10 o the (onstitution does not
come into plav and no plebiscite is necessarv to alidlv apportion (agavan de Oro (itv into two districts.