GR 45861; (February, 1939) (Digest)
G.R. No. 45861 ; March 20, 1939
SALACOT MINING COMPANY, petitioner, vs. QUIRICO ABADILLA, Director of Mines, respondent.
FACTS
The petitioner, Salacot Mining Company, a domestic corporation, validly located and recorded the “Severa Fraction” mineral claim on public lands in Bulacan on February 26, 1935, under the Act of Congress of July 1, 1902, as amended. It performed the required assessment work worth more than P1,000 prior to November 15, 1935. The petitioner filed an application for a patent survey with the respondent Director of Mines after November 15, 1935. The respondent refused to act on the application, arguing that the Constitution of the Philippines (effective November 15, 1935) and Commonwealth Act No. 137 (the Mining Act) prohibit the alienation of mineral lands, and that the petitioner had no vested right to a patent.
ISSUE
Whether the petitioner, holder of an unpatented mining claim located and recorded under the old mining laws prior to November 15, 1935, is entitled to a writ of mandamus to compel the Director of Mines to approve its application for a patent survey, despite the constitutional prohibition against the alienation of natural resources.
RULING
Yes. The Supreme Court, applying the doctrine established in *Gold Creek Mining Corporation vs. Rodriguez and Abadilla*, held that the constitutional prohibition against the alienation of natural resources (Section 1, Article XII of the 1935 Constitution) does not apply to existing rights at the time of the inauguration of the Commonwealth Government on November 15, 1935. A valid location of a mining claim under the old laws, perfected prior to that date, constitutes a property right that is protected as an existing right. The respondent’s refusal to act on the application, based solely on a misinterpretation of the constitutional prohibition, was erroneous. Therefore, a writ of mandamus is granted to direct the respondent to dispose of the application for patent survey on its merits, unaffected by the said constitutional prohibition and Commonwealth Act No. 137 .
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