Snub: How long will congress stand it? An assessment of the constitutionality of Memorandum Circular 108 by Julian, Clarissa Anne Q., Lee, Jamielle Ann C.

• Main Authors: Julian, Clarissa Anne Q., Lee, Jamielle Ann C
• Format: text
• Published: Animo Repository 2007
• Online Access: https://animorepository.dlsu.edu.ph/etd_bachelors/11536
• Institution: De La Salle University

The major function of the government is to protect the inalienable, God-given rights possessed by all human beings. Concisely, its directive is to support and safeguard the welfare of the people. Thus, the constitution controls all the powers granted to the government in order to avoid abuse that could possibly lead to an encroachment of power and to guarantee that the implementation thereof shall be conformable to the sovereign will. Some of these powers are power of the Congress to conduct inquiry in aid of legislatiion and question hour and the power of the president to invoke executive privilege. The power of the Congress to conduct legislative iquiries is expressly provided by the Constitution. Article 6 Section 21 and 22 of the 1987 Constitution provide for these powers of the Congress. Conversely, there is no provision in the Constitution granting executive privilege that is why it has been considered to be a constitutional myth. Various presidents have claimed that this privilege is the product of separation of powers and need not be expressed anymore. These powers, possessed by both executive and legislative, could be the root cause of abuse and corruption in the country. This dissertation is composed of five chapters. This chapter is entitled Snub: How Long Will the Congress Stand it? An assessment of the Constitutionality of Memorandum Circular 108. This thesis seeks to determine whether or not Memorandum Circular 108 also known as Guidelines on Appearances of Department Heads and other Officials of the Executive Department before Congress, undermines the system of check and balance between the executive and legislative branch of our government. Following a summary of the case law developing the nature, scope and limitations of the Congress' power of inquiry, the people's right to public information, doctrine of separation of powers, and executive privilege are described. It attempts to broaden our knowledge of the different special issues investigating the executive branch, with particular emphasis on claims of presidential executive privilege, the problems raised by attempts to access information from the executive officials and the validity of securing the consent of the President in appearing at a question hour by all executive department heads. The researchers have included appendices to supplement the content of this dissertation.