Processing of cases against government officials filed before the Offices of the President (OP) has been suspended for the duration of the enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) in Luzon.
On Tuesday, President Rodrigo R. Dutete signed Administrative Order No. 29 containing guidelines on the cases, appeals, petitions for review and other pleadings pending at the OP during the ECQ.
In the two-paged issuance, which was only released to the media on Wednesday, Duterte declared all “proceedings scheduled to take place during the covered period under the ECQ shall be deemed cancelled.”
He said the affected proceedings will be rescheduled upon lifting of the ECQ by the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) or the Office of the President.
To note, the ECQ was originally set to end on April 13, 2020, but was extended up to April 30, 2020.
Duterte made the decision since the ECQ barred people and lawyers from making any pleadings to the OP.
Rescheduled processing
Also during the ECQ, the reglementary periods for the commencement of appeals, petitions for review, and administrative disciplinary cases, filing of pleadings, appearances, motions, notices, and all other papers shall be deemed interrupted during the ECQ.
Likewise, reglementary periods for the rendition of judgements, resolutions, and orders shall also be deemed interrupted during the said period.
The guidelines will cover the appeals, petitions for review, and administrative disciplinary cases filed against the following government officials: governors and members of the sangguniang panlalawigan; mayors, vice mayors, and members of the sangguniang panglungsod; presidential appointees and others who are withing the jurisdiction of the OP.
The guidelines will not apply to “urgent cases,” which are necessary to enable the government to act expeditiously on matter affecting the current crisis brought about by the novel coronavirus disease (Covid-19) pandemic.
AO 29 will immediately take effect after being published in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
The suspension will retroactively become effective on March 17, 2020, when Duterte declared the ECQ.
Image credits: AP/Aaron Favila