BARANGAY ASSOCIATION FOR NATIONAL ADVANCEMENT AND TRANSPARENCY

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BARANGAY ASSOCIATION FOR NATIONAL ADVANCEMENT AND TRANSPARENCY (BANAT) VS COMELEC

G.R. No. 179271 CARPIO, J .: APRIL21, 2009

FACTS

The 14 May 2007 elections included the elections for the party-list representatives. The COMELEC counted 15,950,900 votes

cast for 93 parties under the Party-List System.[6]

On 27 June 2002, BANAT filed a Petition to Proclaim the Full Number of Party-List Representatives Provided by the

Constitution,[t]he Chairman and the Members of the [COMELEC] have recently been quoted in the national papers that the [COMELEC] is duty bound

to and shall implement the Veterans ruling , that is, would apply the Panganiban formula in allocating party-list seats.” [7]

On 9 July 2007, the COMELEC, sitting as the NBC, promulgated NBC Resolution No. 07-60. NBC Resolution No. 07-60

proclaimed thirteen (13) parties as winners in the party-list elections, namely: Buhay Hayaan Yumabong (BUHAY), Bayan

Muna, Citizens’ Battle Against Corruption (CIBAC), Gabriela’s Women Party (Gabriela), Association of Philippine Electric

Cooperatives (APEC), A Teacher, Akbayan! Citizen’s Action Party (AKBAYAN), Alagad, Luzon Farmers Party (BUTIL), Cooperative -

Natco Network Party (COOP-NATCCO), Anak Pawis, Alliance of Rural Concerns (ARC), and Abono. We quote NBC Resolution

No. 07-60 in its entirety below:

i. Total party-list votes already canvassed/tabulated 15,283,659

ii. Total party-list votes remaining uncanvassed/ untabulated

(i.e. canvass deferred) 1,337,032

iii. Maximum party-list votes (based on 100% outcome) from

areas not yet submitted for canvass (Bogo, Cebu; Bais City;

Pantar, Lanao del Norte; and Pagalungan, Maguindanao)

102,430

Maximum Total Party-List Votes 16,723,121

Party-List Projected total number of votes

BUHAY 1,178,747

BAYAN MUNA 977,476

CIBAC 755,964

GABRIELA 621,718

APEC 622,489

A TEACHER 492,369

AKBAYAN 462,674

ALAGAD 423,190

BUTIL 409,298

COOP-NATCO 412,920

ANAKPAWIS 370,165

ARC 375,846

ABONO 340,151

Proportion of votes received

by the first party

Additional seats

Equal to or at least 6% Two (2) additional seats

Equal to or greater than 4% but less than 6% One (1) additional seatLess than 4% No additional seat

WHEREAS, applying the above formula, Buhay obtained the following percentage:

1,178,747

- - - - - - - - = 0.07248 or 7.2%

http://sc.judiciary.gov.ph/jurisprudence/2009/april2009/179271.htm#_ftn6










16,261,369

which entitles it to two (2) additional seats.

WHEREAS, in determining the additional seats for the other qualified parties, organizations and coalitions, the

correct formula as expressed in Veterans and reiterated in CIBAC is, as follows:

No. of votes of

concerned party No. of additional

Additional seats for = ------------------- x seats allocated to

a concerned party No. of votes of first partyfirst party

WHEREAS, applying the above formula, the results are as follows:

Party List Percentage Additional Seat

BAYAN MUNA 1.65 1

CIBAC 1.28 1

GABRIELA 1.05 1

APEC 1.05 1

A TEACHER 0.83 0

AKBAYAN 0.78 0

ALAGAD 0.71 0

BUTIL 0.69 0

COOP-NATCO 0.69 0

ANAKPAWIS 0.62 0

ARC 0.63 0

ABONO 0.57 0

NOW THEREFORE, by virtue of the powers vested in it by the Constitution, Omnibus Election Code, Executive

Order No. 144, Republic Act Nos. 6646, 7166, 7941 and other elections laws, the Commission on Elections en

banc sitting as the National Board of Canvassers, hereby RESOLVED, as it hereby RESOLVES, to proclaim the following

parties, organizations or coalitions as entitled to additional seats, to wit:

Party List Additional Seats

BUHAY 2

BAYAN MUNA 1

CIBAC 1

GABRIELA 1

APEC 1

Acting on BANAT’s petition, the NBC promulgated NBC Resolution No. 07-88 on 3 August 2007, which reads as follows:

This pertains to the Petition to Proclaim the Full Number of Party-List Representatives Provided by the

Constitution filed by the Barangay Association for National Advancement and Transparency (BANAT).

Acting on the foregoing Petition of the Barangay Association for National Advancement and Transparency

(BANAT) party-list, Atty. Alioden D. Dalaig, Head, National Board of Canvassers Legal Group submitted his

comments/observations and recommendation thereon [NBC 07-041 (PL)], which reads:

COMMENTS / OBSERVATIONS:



Petitioner Barangay Association for National Advancement and Transparency (BANAT), in its Petition

to Proclaim the Full Number of Party-List Representatives Provided by the Constitution prayed for

the following reliefs, to wit:

1. That the full number -- twenty percent (20%) -- of Party-List representatives as mandated by

Section 5, Article VI of the Constitution shall be proclaimed.

2. Paragraph (b), Section 11 of RA 7941 which prescribes the 2% threshold votes, should be

harmonized with Section 5, Article VI of the Constitution and with Section 12 of the same RA 7941 in

that it should be applicable only to the first party-list representative seats to be allotted on the basisof their initial/first ranking.

3. The 3-seat limit prescribed by RA 7941 shall be applied; and

4. Initially, all party-list groups shall be given the number of seats corresponding to every 2% of

the votes they received and the additional seats shall be allocated in accordance with Section 12 of

RA 7941, that is, in proportion to the percentage of votes obtained by each party-list group in

relation to the total nationwide votes cast in the party-list election, after deducting the

corresponding votes of those which were allotted seats under the 2% threshold rule. In fine, the

formula/procedure prescribed in the “ALLOCATION OF PARTY -LIST SEATS, ANNEX “A” of COMELEC

RESOLUTION 2847 dated 25 June 1996, shall be used for [the] purpose of determining how many

seats shall be proclaimed, which party-list groups are entitled to representative seats and how manyof their nominees shall seat [sic].

5. In the alternative, to declare as unconstitutional Section 11 of Republic Act No. 7941 and that

the procedure in allocating seats for party-list representative prescribed by Section 12 of RA 7941

shall be followed.

RECOMMENDATION:

The petition of BANAT is now moot and academic .

The Commission En Banc in NBC Resolution No. 07-60 promulgated July 9, 2007 re “In the Matter

of the Canvass of Votes and Partial Proclamation of the Parties, Organizations and CoalitionsParticipating Under the Party-List System During the May 14, 2007 National and Local

Elections” resolved among others that the total number of seats of each winning party, organization

or coalition shall be determined pursuant to the Veterans Federation

Party versus COMELEC formula upon completion of the canvass of the party-list results.”

On 9 July 2007, Bayan Muna, Abono, and A Teacher asked the COMELEC, acting as NBC, to reconsider its decision to use

he Veterans formula as stated in its NBC Resolution No. 07-60 because the Veterans formula is violative of the Constitution and of

Republic Act No. 7941 (R.A. No. 7941). On the same day, the COMELEC denied reconsideration during the proceedings of the NBC.[11]

Aside from the thirteen party-list organizations proclaimed on 9 July 2007, the COMELEC proclaimed three other party-list

organizations as qualified parties entitled to one guaranteed seat under the Party-List System: Agricultural Sector Alliance of the

Philippines, Inc. (AGAP),[12]

Anak Mindanao (AMIN),[13]

and An Waray.[14]

Per the certification[15]

by COMELEC, the following party-list

organizations have been proclaimed as of 19 May 2008:

Party-List No. of Seat(s)

1.1 Buhay 3

1.2 Bayan Muna 2

1.3 CIBAC 2

1.4 Gabriela 2

1.5 APEC 21.6 A Teacher 1

1.7 Akbayan 1

1.8 Alagad 1

1.9 Butil 1























1.10 Coop-Natco [sic] 1

1.11 Anak Pawis 1

1.12 ARC 1

1.13 Abono 1

1.14 AGAP 1

1.15 AMIN 1

SSUE

1. Is the twenty percent allocation for party-list representatives in Section 5(2), Article VI of the Constitution

mandatory or merely a ceiling?

2. Is the three-seat limit in Section 11(b) of RA 7941 constitutional?

3. Is the two percent threshold prescribed in Section 11(b) of RA 7941 to qualify for one seat constitutional?

4. How shall the party-list representative seats be allocated?

5. Does the Constitution prohibit the major political parties from participating in the party-list elections? If

not, can the major political parties be barred from participating in the party-list elections?[18]

HELD

The petitions have partial merit. We maintain that a Philippine-style party-list election has at least four inviolable parameters

as clearly stated in Veterans. For easy reference, these are:

First , the twenty percent allocation — the combined number of all party-list congressmen shall not exceed

twenty percent of the total membership of the House of Representatives, including those elected under the party

list;

Second, the two percent threshold — only those parties garnering a minimum of two percent of the total validvotes cast for the party-list system are “qualified” to have a seat in the House of Representatives;

Third, the three-seat limit — each qualified party, regardless of the number of votes it actually obtained, is

entitled to a maximum of three seats; that is, one “qualifying” and two additional seats;

Fourth, proportional representation— the additional seats which a qualified party is entitled to shall be

computed “in proportion to their total number of votes.”[19]

However, because the formula in Veterans has flaws in its mathematical interpretation of the term “proportional representation,” this

Court is compelled to revisit the formula for the allocation of additional seats to party-list organizations.

Section 5(1), Article VI of the Constitution states that the “House of Representatives shall be composed of not more than two

hundred and fifty members, unless otherwise fixed by law.” The House of Representatives shall be composed of district

representatives and party-list representatives. The Constitution allows the legislature to modify the number of the members of the

House of Representatives.

Section 5(2), Article VI of the Constitution, on the other hand, states the ratio of party-list representatives to the total number of

representatives. We compute the number of seats available to party-list representatives from the number of legislative districts. On

his point, we do not deviate from the first formula in Veterans, thus:

Number of seats available to

legislative districts x .20 =

Number of seats available to

party-list representatives

.80

This formula allows for the corresponding increase in the number of seats available for party-list representatives whenever a

egislative district is created by law. Since the 14th

Congress of the Philippines has 220 district representatives, there are 55 seats

available to party-list representatives.











220 x .20 = 55

.80

After prescribing the ratio of the number of party-list representatives to the total number of representatives, the Constitution left

the manner of allocating the seats available to party-list representatives to the wisdom of the legislature.

2. Is the three-seat limit in Section 11(b) of RA 7941 constitutional?

We therefore strike down the two percent threshold only in relation to the distribution of the additional seats as found in the

second clause of Section 11(b) of R.A. No. 7941. The two percent threshold presents an unwarranted obstacle to the full

mplementation of Section 5(2), Article VI of the Constitu tion and prevents the attainment of “the broadest possible representation of

party, sectoral or group interests in the House of Representatives.”[30]

In determining the allocation of seats for party-list representatives under Section 11 of R.A. No. 7941, the following procedure

shall be observed:

1. The parties, organizations, and coalitions shall be ranked from the highest to the lowest based on the number of votes they

garnered during the elections.

2. The parties, organizations, and coalitions receiving at least two percent (2%) of the total votes cast for the party-list system

shall be entitled to one guaranteed seat each.

3. Those garnering sufficient number of votes, according to the ranking in paragraph 1, shall be entitled to additional seats in

proportion to their total number of votes until all the additional seats are allocated.

4. Each party, organization, or coalition shall be entitled to not more than three (3) seats.

In computing the additional seats, the guaranteed seats shall no longer be included because they have already been allocated, at

one seat each, to every two-percenter. Thus, the remaining available seats for allocation as “additional seats” are the maximum seats

reserved under the Party List System less the guaranteed seats. Fractional seats are disregarded in the absence of a provision in R.A.

No. 7941 allowing for a rounding off of fractional seats.

In declaring the two percent threshold unconstitutional, we do not limit our allocation of additional seats in Table 3 below to the

wo-percenters. The percentage of votes garnered by each party-list candidate is arrived at by dividing the number of votes garnered

by each party by 15,950,900, the total number of votes cast for party-list candidates. There are two steps in the second round of seat

allocation. First, the percentage is multiplied by the remaining available seats, 38, which is the difference between the 55 maximum

seats reserved under the Party-List System and the 17 guaranteed seats of the two-percenters. The whole integer of the product of the

percentage and of the remaining available seats corresponds to a party’s share in the remaining available seats. Second, we assign one

party-list seat to each of the parties next in rank until all available seats are completely distributed. We distributed all of the remaining

38 seats in the second round of seat allocation. Finally, we apply the three-seat cap to determine the number of seats each qualified

party-list candidate is entitled. Thus:

Table 3. Distribution of Available Party-List Seats

Rank Party VotesGarnered

Votes

Garnered

over

Total Votes

for PartyList, in %

(A)

Guaranteed

Seat

(First Round)

(B)

Additional

Seats

(Second

Round)

(C)

(B) plus

(C), in

whole

integers

(D)

Applying

the three

seat cap

(E)






1 BUHAY 1,169,234 7.33% 1 2.79 3 N.A.

2 BAYAN MUNA 979,039 6.14% 1 2.33 3 N.A.

3 CIBAC 755,686 4.74% 1 1.80 2 N.A.

4 GABRIELA 621,171 3.89% 1 1.48 2 N.A.

5 APEC 619,657 3.88% 1 1.48 2 N.A.

6 A Teacher 490,379 3.07% 1 1.17 2 N.A.

7 AKBAYAN 466,112 2.92% 1 1.11 2 N.A.

8 ALAGAD 423,149 2.65% 1 1.01 2 N.A.

9[31]

COOP-

NATCCO

409,883 2.57% 1 1 2 N.A.

10 BUTIL 409,160 2.57% 1 1 2 N.A.

11 BATAS 385,810 2.42% 1 1 2 N.A.

12 ARC 374,288 2.35% 1 1 2 N.A.

13 ANAKPAWIS 370,261 2.32% 1 1 2 N.A.

14 ABONO 339,990 2.13% 1 1 2 N.A.

15 AMIN 338,185 2.12% 1 1 2 N.A.

16 AGAP 328,724 2.06% 1 1 2 N.A.

17 AN WARAY 321,503 2.02% 1 1 2 N.A.

18 YACAP 310,889 1.95% 0 1 1 N.A.

19 FPJPM 300,923 1.89% 0 1 1 N.A.

20 UNI-MAD 245,382 1.54% 0 1 1 N.A.

21 ABS 235,086 1.47% 0 1 1 N.A.

22 KAKUSA 228,999 1.44% 0 1 1 N.A.

23 KABATAAN 228,637 1.43% 0 1 1 N.A.

24 ABA-AKO 218,818 1.37% 0 1 1 N.A.

25 ALIF 217,822 1.37% 0 1 1 N.A.

26 SENIOR

CITIZENS

213,058 1.34% 0 1 1 N.A.

27 AT 197,872 1.24% 0 1 1 N.A.

28 VFP 196,266 1.23% 0 1 1 N.A.

29 ANAD 188,521 1.18% 0 1 1 N.A.

30 BANAT 177,028 1.11% 0 1 1 N.A.

31 ANG

KASANGGA

170,531 1.07% 0 1 1 N.A.

32 BANTAY 169,801 1.06% 0 1 1 N.A.

33 ABAKADA 166,747 1.05% 0 1 1 N.A.

34 1-UTAK 164,980 1.03% 0 1 1 N.A.

35 TUCP 162,647 1.02% 0 1 1 N.A.

36 COCOFED 155,920 0.98% 0 1 1 N.A.

Total 17 55

Applying the procedure of seat allocation as illustrated in Table 3 above, there are 55 party-list representatives from the 36winning party-list organizations. All 55 available party-list seats are filled. The additional seats allocated to the parties with sufficient

number of votes for one whole seat, in no case to exceed a total of three seats for each party, are shown in column (D).

3. Is the two percent threshold prescribed in Section 11(b) of RA 7941 to qualify for one seat constitutional?







Neither the Constitution nor R.A. No. 7941 prohibits major political parties from participating in the party-list system. On the

contrary, the framers of the Constitution clearly intended the major political parties to participate in party-list elections through their

sectoral wings. In fact, the members of the Constitutional Commission voted down, 19-22, any permanent sectoral seats, and in the

alternative the reservation of the party-list system to the sectoral groups .[33]

In defining a “party” that participates in party -list elections

as either “a political party or a sectoral party,” R.A. No. 7941 also clearly intended that major political parties will participate in the

party-list elections. Excluding the major political parties in party-list elections is manifestly against the Constitution, the intent of the

Constitutional Commission, and R.A. No. 7941. This Court cannot engage in socio-political engineering and judicially legislate the

exclusion of major political parties from the party-list elections in patent violation of the Constitution and the law.

Read together, R.A. No. 7941 and the deliberations of the Constitutional Commission state that major political parties are allowedo establish, or form coalitions with, sectoral organizations for electoral or political purposes. There should not be a problem if, for

example, the Liberal Party participates in the party-list election through the Kabataang Liberal ng Pilipinas (KALIPI), its sectoral youth

wing. The other major political parties can thus organize, or affiliate with, their chosen sector or sectors. To further illustrate, the

Nacionalista Party can establish a fisherfolk wing to participate in the party-list election, and this fisherfolk wing can field its fisherfolk

nominees. Kabalikat ng Malayang Pilipino (KAMPI) can do the same for the urban poor.

The qualifications of party-list nominees are prescribed in Section 9 of R.A. No. 7941:

Qualifications of Party-List Nominees. — No person shall be nominated as party-list representative unless he is

a natural born citizen of the Philippines, a registered voter, a resident of the Philippines for a period of not less than

one (1) year immediately preceding the day of the elections, able to read and write, bona fide member of the party ororganization which he seeks to represent for at least ninety (90) days preceding the day of the election, and is at least

twenty-five (25) years of age on the day of the election.

In case of a nominee of the youth sector, he must at least be twenty-five (25) but not more than thirty (30)

years of age on the day of the election. Any youth sectoral representative who attains the age of thirty (30)

during his term shall be allowed to continue until the expiration of his term.

Under Section 9 of R.A. No. 7941, it is not necessary that the party-list organization’s nominee “wallow in poverty, destitution and

nfirmity”[34]

as there is no financial status required in the law. It is enough that the nominee of the sectoral

party/organization/coalition belongs to the marginalized and underrepresented sectors,[35]

that is, if the nominee represents the

fisherfolk, he or she must be a fisherfolk, or if the nominee represents the senior citizens, he or she must be a senior citizen.

Neither the Constitution nor R.A. No. 7941 mandates the filling-up of the entire 20% allocation of party-list representatives found

n the Constitution. The Constitution, in paragraph 1, Section 5 of Article VI, left the determination of the number of the members of

he House of Representatives to Congress: “The House of Representatives shall be composed of not more than two hundred and fifty

members, unless otherwise fixed by law, x x x.” The 20% allocation of party-list representatives is merely a ceiling; party-list

representatives cannot be more than 20% of the members of the House of Representatives. However, we cannot allow the continued

existence of a provision in the law which will systematically prevent the constitutionally allocated 20% party-list representatives from

being filled. The three-seat cap, as a limitation to the number of seats that a qualified party-list organization may occupy, remains a

valid statutory device that prevents any party from dominating the party-list elections. Seats for party-list representatives shall thus be

allocated in accordance with the procedure used in Table 3 above.

However, by a vote of 8-7, the Court decided to continue the ruling in Veterans disallowing major political parties from

participating in the party-list elections, directly or indirectly. Those who voted to continue disallowing major political parties from the

party-list elections joined Chief Justice Reynato S. Puno in his separate opinion. On the formula to allocate party-list seats, the Court is

unanimous in concurring with this ponencia













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