Teacher’s request to be reinstated as principal rejected

CEBU, Philippines - The Court of Appeals (CA) 19th Division has dismissed a petition for mandamus filed by a school head teacher against officials of the Department of Education (DepEd) for lack of merit.

Lolita B. Uytico had sued DepEd after her appointment as Principal 1 was recalled because she was reportedly not qualified.

She named as respondents in her complaint DepEd Regional Director Recaredo Borgonia, DepEd Secretary Armin Luistro, DepEd Schools Division Superintendent for Cebu Province Arden Monisit, DepEd Schools District Supervisor for Ronda Juan Yuson, and the members of the Division Investigating Committee.

However, in an 11-page decision, Associate Justice Edgardo delos Santos ruled that Uytico has “no clear, legal right to seek the relief of mandamus”.

Uytico said she served as a public school teacher for eight years and as a head teacher for nine years. Sometime in 2006 and 2008, she took the qualifying examinations for principal but failed to get the passing rate.

She said a certain Alfonso Misa told her to prepare her papers for appointment as she was included in the rank-list of applicants for the position of principal.

She complied and after her evaluation on Jan. 17, 2008, the DepEd screening committee recommended her promotion to Principal 1.

However, Borgonia on April 23 and 24, 2009, formed a fact-finding committee to probe the appointment of principals, including Uytico, in the Cebu Province Division.

The investigating committee found out that Venus Bacalla of Tuburan Central School and Uytico of Ronda Central School were not qualified to be appointed as Principal 1 as they failed to meet the qualifications Borgonia approved on Feb. 25, 2010.

The CSC-7, too, upheld the recall of her and Bacalla’s appointment, prompting Uytico to fild a motion for reconsideration.

When the CSC-7 denied her petition, she brought the matter before the courts, asking for a mandamus, damages, payment for attorney’s fees and other costs.

Regional Trial Court Branch 18 Judge Gilbert Moises dismissed Uytico’s motion, favouring the DepEd official’s contention that she has failed to exhaust administrative remedies, making the filing of the petition for mandamus premature.

When Moises denied Uytico’s motion for reconsideration, she elevated the matter to the CA.

In her appeal, Uytico argued that the principle of exhaustion of administrative remediates was not applicable to her case, as the issue is a purely legal matter and therefore within the court’s jurisdiction.

 In their reply, Borgonia and the others argued that Borgonia failed to appeal the decision before the CSC proper.

De los Santos agreed, and ruled that the RTC was correct in its decision.

“Before a writ of mandamus may be issued, it is obligatory upon the petitioner to exhaust all remedies in the ordinary course of law. He must show that the duty sought to be performed must be one which the law specifically enjoins as a duty resulting from an office,” read the decision.

“As correctly held by the trial court, not having resorted first to the administrative remedies afforded by the law, Uytico’s resort to the court was premature,” it added.  (FREEMAN)