RTC ACTING PRESIDING JUDGE ISSUES ORDER EXPUNGING NO. IR-1110 TO COMPLY WITH ERRONEOUS CA DECISION G.R. SP57417 WHICH HAD NO JURISDICTION OVER THE RTC SPECIAL PROCEEDINGS CASE, BUT REVERSED AND NULLIFIED BY THE SUPREME COURT G.R. No.182645 DECEMBER 4, 2009, REINSTATING AMENDED DECISION

       On February 14, 2007, Judge Lore V. Bagalacsa, on the strength of Supreme Administrative Circular 5-98 as ordered and endorsed by then Pairing Judge Alfredo Agawa, issued an Order in the case she decided entitled "Special Proceedings No. IR-1110", the dispositive portion of the Order which states:

        

        xxx"As stated by the Supreme Court in a long line of cases, once a judgment attains finality it thereby becomes IMMUTABLE and UNALTERABLE.  The Court(RTC), in the absence of any supervening events, cannot grant the relief prayed for by the Solicitor General or any of the oppositors in this case, as to do so will undeniably modify and alter the AMENDED DECISION which has long become FINAL and EXECUTORY.  Moreover, the Solicitor General's standing in Court has been passed upon by this Court(RTC) in the AMENDED DECISION where he was declared to be not a real party in the proceedings, with more reason that the Solicitor General has no personality to continuously and repeatedly file various motions, comments, objections or opposition.

   

         It bears stressing that the AMENDED DECISION in this case (Special Proceedings No. IR-1110) already became FINAL and EXECUTORY several years ago.  Once a judgment becomes final and executory it can no longer be disturbed except only for the correction of clerical errors, or where supervening events render its execution impossible or unjust(Sampaguita Garments Corporation v. NLRC, 233 SCRA 260).  The Court(RTC) will no longer pass upon the other arguments raised by the Solicitor General in view of the above pronouncements.

        WHEREFORE, the motions and comments filed by the Solicitor General are DENIED for lack of merit.

        SO ORDERED." 

      On February 21, 2007, barely three days upon assumption as Acting Presiding Judge of RTC Branch 34, Iriga City, the Hon. Judge Lelu Contreras issued an Order motu proprio, expunging the entire THIRTY EIGHT (38) VOLUMES of records of Special Proceedings No. IR-1110 on the basis of the April 16, 2002 Decision of the Court of Appeals CA G.R. No. SP57417, an ERRONEOUS ruling which had no jurisdiction at all over the Amended Decision of this Hon. Court.  The Order of Judge Lelu Contreras contravened, reversed and vacated this Honorable Court’s Amended Decision, Certificate of Finality, and the February 14, 2007 Order, all issued by a co-equal magistrate who decided this case.  Worse, the said February 21, 2007 Order of the Hon. Judge Contreras had, in effect, grossly ignored the two (2) Supreme Court Resolutions with Entries of Judgments in SC G.R. No.140271 and SC G.R. No.142477 dated February 22, 2000 and September 5, 2000 respectively, the said Order being against the established principle of the hierarchy of Courts under Article VIII, Section 5, paragraph (2) sub-paragraph (c) and (e) of the Constitution, which declares:

“The SUPREME COURT shall have the following powers:
xxx
(2) Review, revise, reverse, modify, or affirm on appeal or certiorari, as the law or the Rules of Court may provide, final judgments and orders of lower courts in:

xxx
(c) All cases in which the jurisdiction of any lower court is in issue;

    xxx
     (e) All cases in which only an error or question of law is involved.”

        On December 4, 2009, the Supreme Court, in a PETITION FOR CLARIFICATION and CERTIORARI in SC-G.R. No. 182645, promulgated a DECISION based on the merits of the case, the dispositive portion of which specifically states:

          

        “WHEREFORE, premises considered, the petition is GRANTED.  The 16 April 2002 Decision of the Court of Appeals in CA-G.R. SP No. 57417 and the February 27, 2007 (should be February 21, 2007) Order of the Regional Trial Court of Iriga City, Branch 34 are hereby NULLIFIED.  The 13 August 1999 Amended Decision of the Regional Trial Court of Iriga City in SP No. IR-1110 is hereby REINSTATED.(607 SCRA p.770-777, December 4, 2009)

        On June 22, 2011, the Supreme Court, before dismissing the case of SC petitioner Rene Pascual on the same case, discussed separately the RTC Iriga City AMENDED DECISION, and declared:

  "THE ONLY EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULE ON THE IMMUTABILITY OF FINAL JUDGMENTS are: (1) CLERICAL ERRORS, (2)THE SO-CALLED NUNC PRO TUNC ENTRIES WHICH CAUSE NO PREJUDICE TO ANY PARTY, and (3)VOID JUDGMENTS.xxx"  

      UNLIKE THE AUGUST 13, 1999 AMENDED DECISION OF THE RTC IRIGA CITY, BRANCH 34, (which was found by the CA to be a complete nullity), THERE IS NO SHOWING THAT THE INSTANT CASE (Special Proceedings No. IR-1110) FALLS UNDER ANY OF THE EXCEPTIONS ENUMERATED ABOVE." 

       Worthy also to note is the last paragraph before the dismissal of the Certiorari case of Rene Pascual, with the Supreme Court ruling that it is now "with prejudice" for Rene Pascual, Jaime Robles, the OSG, or any other party to bring to petition for appeal and question the finality and immutability of the Amended Decision, (as opposed to the CA Decision being a void judgment and was nullified together with the February 21, 2007 Order of Judge Lelu Contreras), the Supreme Court stating firmly:

  "CONSIDERING THE FOREGOING (after discussing the immutability of the AMENDED DECISION), THE COURT NO LONGER FINDS IT NECESSARY TO ADDRESS THE ISSUES RAISED BY PETITIONER." 


          THERE IS NO OTHER RECOURSE FOR THE HONORABLE MAGISTRATE OF THE RTC BRANCH 34 OF IRIGA CITY BUT TO IMPLEMENT THE LONG DELAYED EXECUTION OF THE AMENDED DECISION.