Republic Act 8186

REPUBLIC ACT 8186

The prohibition on promotion / designation of certain officers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) under Republic Act 8186, particularly the last paragraph of Section 4 thereof, is among the recurring issues concerning nominees or appointees referred to the Committee on National Defense for its consideration. The said provision of the law provides--

"xxx Provided, That except for the Chief of Staff of the AFP, no officer shall be assigned/designated to the aforementioned key positions or promoted to the rank of Brigadier General/Commodore or higher if he has less than one (1) year of active service remaining prior to compulsory retirement."

The consideration of the nomination / appointment of the AFP officers listed below are the notable Commission deliberations or actions concerning the prohibition provided under RA 8186.

MAJOR GENERAL EFREN P. ORBON

DATE OF NOMINATION : 07 December 2004

DATE OF ACTION : 13 December 2004

DATE OF RETIREMENT : 13 December 2005

The Plenary Session was called to order on 13 December 2004 (Monday) at 5:37 p.m. by then Chairperson of the Commission on Appointments, Senator Franklin M. Drilon. The Chairperson of the Committee on National Defense, Representative Jurdin Jesus M. Romualdo, moved for the Commission to give its consent to the nomination of Brigadier General Efren P. Orbon to the rank of Major General in the Armed Forces of the Philippines. The motion was seconded by then Representative Imee Marcos and Senator Juan Ponce Enrile. There were no other matters considered and the session adjourned at 5:41 p.m. (13th Congress, 1st Regular Session, Plenary Session No. 06 Journal, 13 December 2004)

The Committee on National Defense did not conduct any meeting or hearing to consider the nomination of BGen. Orbon. The proceeding was a direct action by the Commission pursuant to Chapter V, Section 16 of the Rules of the Commission.

LIEUTENANT GENERAL EUGENIO V. CEDO

DATE OF NOMINATION : 30 August 2006

DATE OF ACTION : 20 September 2006

DATE OF RETIREMENT : 06 September 2007

The Commission gave its unanimous consent to the nomination of Major General Eugenio V. Cedo to the rank of Lieutenant General during its Plenary Session on 20 September 2006. (13th Congress, 3rd Regular Session, Plenary Session No. 03 Journal, 20 September 2006)

***Physical records of the proceedings in the Committee on National Defense relevant to this appointment are still being pulled-out and entries shall be updated as soon as possible.

CAPTAIN EDGAR J. CAUMERON

DATE OF NOMINATION : 23 September 2007

DATE OF ACTION : 04 October 2007

DATE OF RETIREMENT : 04 October 2008

The nomination of Captain Edgar J. Caumeron to the rank of Commodore was received by the Commission on 03 October 2007. Due to the lack of time to consider the nomination before the prohibition under Section 4 of Republic Act 8186 will set-in, the Committee on National Defense passed a Resolution on 04 October 2007 petitioning the Commission to give its consent on the nomination of Captain Edgar J. Caumeron to the rank of Commodore. The Commission on the same day gave its consent to the nomination through a Resolution signed by the majority of its members. The Resolution cited second paragraph of Section 16, Chapter IV of the Rules of Commission which grants the authority to directly consider a nomination or appointment.

COLONEL ARTHUR R. ABADILLA

DATE OF NOMINATION : 29 November 2007

DATE OF ACTION : 11 June 2008 (Rejected)

DATE OF RETIREMENT : 02 December 2008

The nomination of Colonel Arthur R. Abadilla was among those recommended by the Committee on National Defense for the Commission to give its consent in plenary on 12 March 2008. The Commission however suspended its consideration of the said nomination together with other 23 AFP Officers when Senator M.A. Madrigal invoked Section 20 of the Rules of the Commission. After which, the Congress adjourned for the Lenten break and the nomination of Colonel Abadilla was considered by-passed pursuant to Section 17 of the Rules. No re-nomination or ad interim appointment was issued by the Office of the President to Colonel Abadilla.

The Chairperson of the Committee on National Defense, Representative Rodolfo T. Alabano, during the plenary session on 11 June 2008 moved that the Commission give its consent to the nomination of Colonel Abadilla to the rank of Brigadier General. Senator Panfilo M. Lacson pointed out that the Commission lost its jurisdiction on the initial nomination of Colonel Abadilla when it was by-passed on 19 December 2007. Other AFP officers were re-issued ad interim appointments or nominations when by-passed by the Commission but he was not. Senator Lacson stressed that there was no oversight on the part of the Office of the President when it did not re-nominate Colonel Abadilla. The issuance of re-nomination or ad interim appointment is accordance with the prohibition under Section 4 of RA 8186.

In view of Senator Lacson's objection on the consideration of the nomination of Colonel Abadilla, then Chairperson of the Commission Senator Manuel B. Villar Jr., called for a division of the house. Nine members voted for the approval of the motion, one objected, and three abstained. Consequently, the nomination of Colonel Abadilla was disapproved for failure to muster the requisite majority vote of all the members of the Commission. (14th Congress, 1st Regular Session, Plenary Session No. 10, Journal, 11 June 2008)

LIEUTENANT GENERAL NOEL S. CLEMENT

DATE OF APPOINTMENT : 08 January 2019

DATE OF ACTION : 30 January 2019

DATE OF RETIREMENT : 05 January 2020

Senator Panfilo M. Lacson raised the issue on the prohibition as far as the appointment of then Lt. Gen. Noel Clement during the Committee deliberation on 30 January 2019. His ad interim appointment dated 08 January 2019 was made to retroactively take effect on December 15, 2018. Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III pointed out that the date of effectivity of the appointment should be the date of the appointment paper forwarded to the Commission.

After a thorough discussion, the Committee eventually agreed to consider the appointment of Lt. Gen. Clement but with a stern warning that succeeding nominations or appointments with similar issues shall be dealt with firmly. Vice Chair Ronaldo B. Zamora manifested that it is a policy issue and a responsibility or burden which the DND or AFP should not pass over to the Commission at the expense of the subject nominee or appointee. (Committee on National Defense Committee Meeting TSN, 30 January 2019)

MAJOR GENERAL HENRY M. DOYAOEN

DATE OF NOMINATION : 13 April 2021

DATE OF ACTION : 17 May 2021

DATE OF RETIREMENT : 17 May 2022

The nomination of Brigadier General Henry M. Doyaoen to the rank of Major General was received by the Commission on 14 April 2021. He completed the submission of the documentary requirements on 05 May 2021. The Office of the Deputy Chief of Staff for Personnel (J1) through a letter dated 06 May 2021 requested that the Committee on National Defense and the Commission consider his nomination prior to or on the date of the resumption of session of Congress on 17 May 2021 in view of the prohibition provided under RA 8186.

The Committee heeded the request of the J1 and conducted a committee meeting on 17 May 2021 purposely to deliberate on his nomination. On the same day, the nomination was favorably recommended to the Commission for its consent.

During the Plenary Session, Senator Panfilo M. Lacson made a seconding speech highlighting the significant role of the Commission in the pursuit of its mandate under the Constitution. He manifested that any delay in the confirmation of the nomination of the subject officer at a later date shall disqualify him from being promoted to the next higher rank pursuant to the provision of Section 4 of RA 8186. He likewise stressed that while the Commission is duty-bound to accord weight and respect to the President's nominations and appointments, it shall always uphold the rule of law in the fulfillment of its mandate and to scrutinize and pass upon presidential appointments and nominations with the proper observance of checks and balances. (18th Congress, 2nd Regular Session, Plenary Session No. 14 Journal, 17 May 2021)

Return to Home Page

Source: Databank and Library Service (DBLS)

Report abuse