Supreme Court reverses self, upholds law creating Dinagat Islands province

BAGUIO CITY, Philippines – Reversing its ruling last year, the Supreme Court (SC) has upheld the constitutionality of a law creating the province of Dinagat Islands.

Voting 9-6 during its session in this summer capital last Tuesday, the SC ruled that Republic Act 9355 is constitutional as it set aside its decision in February last year that nullified the law for violating the minimum requirements for population and land area under the Local Government Code.

In the new decision penned by Associate Justice Antonio Eduardo Nachura, the SC held that the case of Dinagat Islands is specifically exempted from the land area requirement of 2,000 square kilometers and population requirement of at least 250,000 for a province.

It cited Section 461 of the Local Government Code, which provides that “the province of Dinagat Islands, composed as it is of a group of islands, is exempt from compliance not only with the territorial contiguity requirement but also with the 2,000-square kilometer land area criterion.”

Associate Justice Diosdado Peralta, who penned the previous majority decision, dissented and maintained his position that RA 9355 is null and void since Dinagat Islands does not meet the land area and population requirements for a province.

It was found that Dinagat Islands only has an approximate land area of 802.12 square kilometers and a population of only 106,951 as of May 2000.

The change in the ruling was brought about by the retirement last year of Chief Justice Reynato Puno and the appointment of Associate Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno.

The earlier ruling was already made final and had an entry of judgment last year. But SC spokesman Midas Marquez said the SC had to recall the entry of judgment over the second appeal of the decision filed by new parties-in-interest, particularly new officials who won in last year’s elections.

The case stemmed from a taxpayers’ suit filed by Surigao del Norte residents Rodolfo Navarro, Victor Bernal, and Rene Medina who argued that the creation of the Dinagat Islands province was an illegal act of Congress and unjustly deprived the people of Surigao del Norte a large chunk of their territory, internal revenue allocation, and rich resources.

Dinagat Islands is one of the three main groups of islands comprising Surigao del Norte. The other two are the mainland and Surigao City and Siargao Island and Bucas Grande.