4 National Artist awards invalidated

MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) yesterday declared invalid the conferment of National Artist awards on film director Carlo Caparas, Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, fashion designer Jose “Pitoy” Moreno and architect Francisco Mañosa in 2009.

SC spokesman Theodore Te said the justices unanimously ruled to nullify Proclamation Nos. 1826, 1827, 1828 and 1829, which declared the four as National Artists.

Te said the order issued by former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo was voided because it disregarded the rules of the National Commission on Culture and the Arts (NCCA) and Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) in giving “preferential treatment” to the four in the selection of awardees.

“The manifest disregard of the rules, guidelines and processes of the NCCA and CCP was an arbitrary act that unduly favored Alvarez, Caparas, Moreno and Mañosa,” the SC said.

It stressed there was violation of the constitutional “equal protection clause” because of this preferential treatment.

The high court added that the conferment orders were issued with “grave abuse of discretion.”

“There is grave abuse of discretion when an act is done contrary to the Constitution, the law or jurisprudence or executed whimsically, capriciously or arbitrarily out of malice, ill will or personal bias,” it explained.

The high tribunal pointed out that the four were not among the nominees shortlisted by the NCCA and the CCP boards.

The SC granted the petition filed in August 2009 by former recipients of the prestigious award, led by National Artist for Literature Virgilio Almario, and lifted the status quo ante order stopping the conferment of the 2009 awards.

The high court, however, upheld the decision of the Arroyo administration dropping Ramon Santos from the list of awardees and dismissed the appeal of the petitioners for his reinstatement in the list.

The SC said it was well within the Palace’s power and discretion to proclaim “all or some or even none of the recommendees of the CCP and NCCA boards” without having to justify his or her action.

It pointed out that the recommendation of the NCCA and CCP was not “binding but only discretionary.”

With this latest ruling, the conferment of the awards on the three remaining awardees – Lazaro Francisco (posthumous for literature), Manuel Conde (posthumous for film and broadcast), and Federico Aguilar Alcuaz (visual arts, painting, sculpture and mixed media) – may push through after it was halted by the SC order in 2009.

SC decision lauded

Meanwhile, the NCCA yesterday lauded the SC decision invalidating the proclamation of Caparas, Alvarez, Moreno and Mañosa as National Artists.

NCCA legal division head Trixie Cruz-Angeles said they are pleased with the SC ruling because “it protects the integrity of the selection process.”

“There was grave abuse of discretion because they did not go through the process, so they should not be hailed as National Artists,” Angeles said.

“They could go through the process again. The nomination of Alvarez was questioned because she was then executive director of the NCCA so there was conflict of interest,” she added.

In the case of Caparas, Angeles said his name was only added to the shortlist of nominees by the Malacañang committee.

There were widespread perception that the inclusion of their names was “politically motivated.” – With Evelyn Macairan