GR L 21039; (February, 1967) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-21039; February 18, 1967
FLORENTINO PILAR, petitioner and appellant, vs. SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC WORKS AND COMMUNICATIONS, COMMISSIONER OF CIVIL SERVICE, HON. AMELITO R. MUTUC ET AL., respondents and appellees.
FACTS
Florentino Pilar was appointed Assistant of the Radio Control Division of the Department of Public Works and Communications on December 1, 1957, and had served as Acting Chief on several occasions. On February 26, 1962, the Office of the President, upon recommendation of the Secretary, declared the positions of Chief and Assistant Chief of the Radio Control Division as primarily confidential and/or highly technical in nature, a classification subsequently noted by the Commissioner of Civil Service. Prior to this, these positions were part of the classified civil service. On April 26, 1962, the Secretary appointed Roberto San Andres as Chief of the Division, effective March 26, 1962, following the retirement of the incumbent. This appointment was noted by the Commissioner of Civil Service as pertaining to the unclassified service. San Andres assumed office on March 26, 1962. Pilar filed a petition for declaratory relief, mandamus, and injunction to nullify the classification, declare San Andres unqualified, exclude him from office, and compel the Secretary to appoint Pilar instead. The Court of First Instance of Manila dismissed the petition.
ISSUE
Whether the Court of First Instance correctly dismissed Pilar’s petition for declaratory relief, mandamus, and injunction.
RULING
Yes, the dismissal was correct. The action for declaratory relief was improper because Pilar’s alleged right to the office had already been breached by San Andres’s appointment and assumption of office four months prior to the filing of the petition. The action for mandamus failed because Pilar did not demonstrate a clear legal right to the office, and the proper remedy for challenging another’s occupancy of a public office is quo warranto, not mandamus. Furthermore, even if the position were still in the classified service, the appointing power retains discretion in selection. Lastly, Pilar failed to exhaust administrative remedies, as he filed a protest against San Andres’s appointment, which was approved by the Commissioner of Civil Service, but he did not move for reconsideration or appeal that approval. The order of dismissal was affirmed.