G.R. No. 189949, March 25, 2015
CASTILLEJOS CONSUMERS ASSOCIATION, INC. (CASCONA), Petitioners, vs. JOSE S. DOMINGUEZ, ISIAS Q. VIDUA, VICENTE M. BARRETO, JOSE M. SANTIAGO, JOSE NASERIV C. DOLOJAN, JUAN FERNANDEZ, HONORARIO DILAG, JR., FIDEL CORREA, ALICIA MERCADO, LECIRA JUAREZ, ATTY. FULGENCIO VIGARE, JR., ANGELITO U. SACRO, MILDRED ESGUERRA, ANTONIO APALISOK, SALAMAN D. MANGCA, DANILO S. SEGOBRE, EDMUNDO D. ENGAO, P/SUPT. ROLAND FELIX, P/SUPT. JERRY SUMBAD, P/INSP. GERRY HADUCA, P/INSP. ROBIN FUGIRAN, COOPERATIVE DEVELOPMENT AUTHORITY (CDA), BARTOLOME GALARITA, JR., WILFREDO JIMENEZ, HITLER UNTAL, JOEL JOHN PACTORES, ROLLY CADORNA, RUDY ELIPSE, IBRAHIM LAHI, RODOLFO BONIFACIO, JR., ANECITO VIEJO, JR., JONARD IRAN, ANGELITO BALDONAZA, NIKKO DAJAY, ROLANDO ASPA, JESON CABATINGAN, JOBERT UGANG (SECURITY GUARDS), JOHN DOES (MEMBERS OF THE ZAMBALES PROVINCIAL MOBILE GROUP OF THE PHILIPPINE NATIONAL POLICE), Respondents.

FACTS

Petitioner CASCONA is an organization of electric consumers from Castillejos, Zambales, under the coverage area of Zambales II Electric Cooperative, Inc. (ZAMECO II). Acting on a letter-complaint from CASCONA, the National Electrification Administration (NEA) issued a Resolution dated November 24, 2004, removing respondents Jose Dominguez, Isias Vidua, Vicente Barreto, Jose Santiago, Jose Naseriv Dolojan, Juan Fernandez, and Honorario Dilag, Jr. (Dominguez, et al.) and all incumbent members of the Board of Directors of ZAMECO II for mismanagement of funds and expiration of their term of office. Dominguez, et al. appealed to the Court of Appeals (CA), arguing that the Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA) abrogated NEA’s regulatory power and that ZAMECO II had registered with the Cooperative Development Authority (CDA). The CA upheld NEA’s authority. On appeal, the Supreme Court, in its March 13, 2009 Decision in G.R. Nos. 176935-36, ruled that EPIRA did not affect NEA’s power over administrative cases involving electric cooperative boards and that there was substantial evidence to justify the removal of Dominguez, et al. The Court, however, remanded the case to the CA to determine whether ZAMECO II complied with the EPIRA procedure for conversion into a stock cooperative under the CDA. An Entry of Judgment was issued but later recalled as the March 13, 2009 Decision was deemed interlocutory pending the CA’s report.
Meanwhile, ZAMECO II was managed by an interim board under NEA’s supervision. On September 1, 2009, respondent Atty. Fulgencio Vigare, as CDA Administrator for Luzon, issued a Memorandum declaring that CDA should assume jurisdiction over ZAMECO II, citing a House Committee hearing where NEA allegedly acceded to CDA’s jurisdiction. On October 19, 2009, CDA issued Resolution No. 262, S-2009, creating a team to meet with ZAMECO II management, pave the way for elections, and seek a DOJ opinion on jurisdiction. This was implemented by Special Order 2009-304. According to CASCONA, on October 22, 2009, respondents Fidel Correa, Alicia Mercado, and Angelito Sacro entered ZAMECO II premises and refused to leave, with PNP members and security guards assembling outside. On October 23, 2009, respondents P/Insp. Gerry Haduca and P/Insp. Robin Fugiran asked for a discussion, and when the gates were opened, the PNP members and security guards forcefully entered. On October 24, 2009, respondents Jose Dominguez and two other former board members arrived. Tensions de-escalated after the governor’s intervention. CASCONA filed this petition for indirect contempt.

ISSUE

Whether the acts of respondents in attempting to take control of ZAMECO II and ultimately reinstate the respondents-former board members to their former positions despite the ruling of the Supreme Court upholding the validity of the removal of the respondents-former board members from their positions and the pendency of the proceedings before the Court of Appeals are punishable as indirect contempt under Rule 71, Section 3 (b), (c) and (d).

RULING

Yes. The Supreme Court found respondents Jose S. Dominguez, Isias Q. Vidua, Vicente M. Barreto, Jose Naseriv C. Dolojan, and Honorario Dilag, Jr., as former board members of ZAMECO II, and Atty. Fulgencio Vigare, Jr. and Angelito U. Sacro, as CDA officials, GUILTY of indirect contempt for attempting to pre-empt the final decision of the Court in G.R. Nos. 176935-36. The Court ordered each of them to pay a FINE of Ten Thousand Pesos (P10,000.00), within ten (10) days from the finality of this decision. The Court held that the acts of the respondents—issuing the September 1, 2009 Memorandum, CDA Resolution No. 262, S-2009 and Special Order 2009-304, and the attempted forceful occupation of ZAMECO II premises—constituted willful disobedience of the March 13, 2009 Decision, which, although interlocutory, had definitive rulings on NEA’s jurisdiction and the validity of the removal of Dominguez, et al. These acts were calculated to undermine the Court’s authority and the pending judicial process. The Court noted that the CA subsequently reported that ZAMECO II’s registration with CDA did not comply with the EPIRA referendum requirement, and the Court’s October 20, 2014 decision in the main case finally ruled that ZAMECO II remained under NEA’s jurisdiction, not CDA’s. The contemptuous acts were an attempt to seize control of ZAMECO II based on a purported shift in jurisdiction that was still under judicial determination.