Commission on Appointments
19th Congress
Seal of the Commission on Appointments
History
Founded1935 (1935)
1987 (1987) (reestablishment)
New session started
July 25, 2022 (2022-07-25)
Leadership
Chairman
Juan Miguel Zubiri, independent
since July 25, 2022
Vice Chairman
Ramon Guico Jr., Lakas
since August 23, 2022
Majority Leader
Luis Raymond Villafuerte, NUP
since August 23, 2022
Minority Leader
Alan Peter Cayetano, independent
since August 23, 2022
Structure
Seats24 members
1 ex officio presiding officer
Political groups
Meeting place
GSIS Building, Pasay, Metro Manila
Website
www.comappt.gov.ph

The Commission on Appointments (Filipino: Komisyon sa Paghirang,[1] abbreviated as CA) is a constitutional body which confirms or rejects certain political appointments made by the President of the Philippines. The current commission was created by the 1987 Constitution.[2]

While often associated with the Congress of the Philippines, which consists of the House of Representatives and the Senate, and mistakenly referred to as a congressional committee,[3] the Commission on Appointments is an independent body from the legislature, though its membership is confined to members of Congress.[2]

Background

The Commission on Appointments confirms certain appointments made by the President of the Philippines. Article VII, Section 16 of the 1987 Constitution reads:

"The President shall nominate and, with the consent of the Commission on Appointments, appoint the heads of the executive departments, ambassadors, other public ministers and consuls, or officers of the armed forces from the rank of colonel or naval captain, and other officers whose appointments are vested in him in this Constitution. He shall also appoint all other officers of the Government whose appointments are not otherwise provided for by law, and those whom he may be authorized by law to appoint. The Congress may, by law, vest the appointment of other officers lower in rank in the President alone, in the courts, or in the heads of departments, agencies, commissions, or boards.[4]

The Vice President is exempted from a confirmation hearing to any cabinet position.[5][6] The nomination of a person to the vice presidency due to a vacancy is handled by both houses of Congress, voting separately.

During the operation of the Jones Law, the Senate confirmed the Governor-General's appointments. During the operation of the 1935 Constitution, the commission was composed of 21 members of the National Assembly of the Philippines. With the restoration of the bicameral Congress in 1940, the commission was composed of 12 senators and 12 representatives with the Senate President as the ex officio chairman. During the operation of the 1973 Constitution, the president appointed at will and without "checks and balances" from the then-parliament. The current constitution, which was ratified in 1987, brought back the 25-member commission.[7]

Officials confirmed

  1. Heads of Executive Departments
  2. Ambassadors, other Public Ministers and Consuls
  3. Officers of the Armed Forces from the rank of Colonel or Naval Captain
  4. Regular Members of the Judicial and Bar Council
  5. Chairman and Commissioners of the Civil Service Commission
  6. Chairman and Commissioners of the Commission on Elections
  7. Chairman and Commissioners of the Commission on Audit


The appointments of all judges and the Ombudsman need not be confirmed by the Commission on Appointments. Instead, they are recommended by the Judicial and Bar Council in a short list, from which the President shall then choose from.

Prior to the institutionalization of the party-list system, the president appointed the sectoral representatives. Congress then decided to have these confirmed via the commission, as well.

Under the 1935 Constitution

  1. Heads of the executive departments and bureaus
  2. Officers of the Army from the rank of colonel, of the Navy and air forces from the rank of captain or commander
  3. All other officers of the Government whose appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, and those whom he may be authorized by law to appoint
  4. Ambassadors, other public ministers, and consuls
  5. Members of the Supreme Court and all judges of inferior courts
  6. The Resident Commissioner of the Philippines (until 1946)

Composition

The commission is composed of the Senate President, the ex officio chairman, twelve senators, and twelve members of the House of Representatives. Members from each house of Congress are elected based on proportional representation from the political parties and parties or organizations registered under the party-list system represented. The Chairman of the Commission shall vote only in case of a tie. It shall act on all appointments submitted within thirty session days of Congress. It shall be governed by a majority vote of all members.[8]

Procedure

A president can either make a nomination or an appointment. Either action involves the commission.

Most presidential actions are ad interim appointments, done when Congress is not in session. In these cases, the appointment allows the official to discharge the duties related to the office immediately. The ad interim appointment ceases to be valid if the commission explicitly rejects the appointment, or if the commission "bypasses" the appointment. If the commission rejects the appointment, the official is no longer allowed to discharge the duties related to his or her office, and the president has to appoint someone else. If the commission bypasses the official, the president can re-appoint that person.

The president can also nominate an official if Congress is in session. In a "regular" nomination, the official can only discharge the duties once the commission consents to the appointment.

Just as other legislative bodies, the commission is divided into different committees. Each appointment is coursed through the committee concerned. After hearings are held, the committee decides to confirm or reject the appointment; the commission en banc then deliberates on whether to accept the committee's decision.

Meeting place

The commission meets at the GSIS Building in Pasay, the seat of the Senate.

Current membership

These are the members for the 19th Congress of the Philippines:[9]

Member Chamber District Party Bloc
Nancy Binay Senate At-large UNA Majority
Ferjenel Biron House of Representatives Iloilo–4th Nacionalista Majority
Alan Peter Cayetano Senate At-large Independent Independent
JV Ejercito Senate At-large NPC Majority
Francis Escudero Senate At-large NPC Majority
Jinggoy Estrada Senate At-large PMP Majority
Albert Garcia House of Representatives Bataan–2nd NUP Majority
Greg Gasataya House of Representatives Bacolod NPC Majority
Ramon Guico Jr. House of Representatives Pangasinan–5th Lakas Majority
Bong Go Senate At-large PDP–Laban Majority
Risa Hontiveros Senate At-large Akbayan Minority
Loren Legarda Senate At-large NPC Majority
Oscar Malapitan House of Representatives Caloocan–1st Nacionalista Majority
Rodante Marcoleta House of Representatives Party-list SAGIP Partylist Majority
Imee Marcos Senate At-large Nacionalista Majority
Lani Mercado House of Representatives Cavite–2nd Lakas Majority
Jose Gay Padiernos House of Representatives Party-list GP Party Majority
Johnny Pimentel House of Representatives Surigao del Sur–2nd PDP–Laban Majority
Grace Poe Senate At-large Independent Majority
Jurdin Jesus Romualdo House of Representatives Camiguin Lakas Majority
Manuel Sagarbarria House of Representatives Negros Oriental–2nd NPC Majority
Francis Tolentino Senate At-large PDP–Laban Majority
Luis Raymund Villafuerte House of Representatives Camarines Sur–2nd NUP Majority
Cynthia Villar Senate At-large Nacionalista Majority
Juan Miguel Zubiri[lower-alpha 1] Senate At-large Independent Majority
Membership per party
Party Senate House Total %
NPC 3 2 5 21%
Nacionalista 2 2 4 17%
Lakas 0 3 3 13%
PDP–Laban 2 1 3 13%
NUP 0 2 2 8%
Akbayan 1 0 1 4%
GP Party 0 1 1 4%
PMP 1 0 1 4%
SAGIP Partylist 0 1 1 4%
UNA 1 0 1 4%
Independent 2+1[lower-alpha 1] 0 2+1 8%+1
Total 12+1 1224+1100%+1
  1. 1 2 The Senate president only votes to break ties.

Rejection of appointment

Rejection by the commission of the president's appointment is very rare. Usually, due to the padrino system of patronage politics, the president's party controls a supermajority of votes in the House of Representatives, thus mirroring its composition of the commission. This means appointments are almost always are approved, although some are not without difficulty.

During the presidency of Rodrigo Duterte, six of his appointments were rejected. These are:

Other administrations also had a few of its appointments rejected. These were:[16]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Mga Constitutional Commission (Lupong Pansaligang Batas) | GOVPH". Official Gazette of the Republic of the Philippines. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "The Commission on Appointments". Commission on Appointments. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  3. ↑ Macaraig, Ayee (June 21, 2014). "Confirmation limbo: Long but futile process?". Rappler. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
  4. ↑ The 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines, Chan Robles law library.
  5. ↑ 1987 Constitution of the Philippines, art. 7, sec. 3
  6. ↑ Valderama, Tita (May 16, 2022). "To whom much is given, much is required". The Manila Times. Retrieved June 6, 2022. In short, the vice president is exempted from the scrutiny of the congressional Commission on Appointments when appointed to a Cabinet position.
  7. ↑ "Historical Notes". Archived from the original on April 20, 2021.
  8. ↑ "Commission on Appointments Official Website". Archived from the original on November 20, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2008.
  9. ↑ "CA elects Members for 19th Congress". comappt.gov.ph. August 24, 2022.
  10. ↑ "Commission on Appointments rejects Yasay". ABS-CBN News. March 8, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  11. ↑ Santos, Elmor P. (May 4, 2017). "CA rejects Gina Lopez appointment as DENR chief". CNN Philippines. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  12. ↑ Alvarez, Kathrina Charmaine (August 16, 2017). "CA rejects Taguiwalo as DSWD secretary". GMA News Online. Retrieved August 16, 2017.
  13. ↑ Geronimo, Jee Y. (September 6, 2017). "CA rejects Rafael Mariano as agrarian reform secretary". Rappler. Retrieved September 6, 2017.
  14. ↑ Placido, Dharel (October 10, 2017). "Ubial rejected as health secretary". ABS-CBN News. Retrieved October 10, 2017.
  15. ↑ Medenilla, Samuel P. (November 12, 2021). "Duterte picks Manila chief prosecutor Rey Bulay as new Comelec commissioner | Samuel P. Medenilla". BusinessMirror. Retrieved December 22, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Is Yasay the first appointee to be rejected by the CA?". Rappler. March 8, 2017. Retrieved June 11, 2017.
  17. ↑ Legaspi, Amita (September 30, 2009). "Saludo appointment as CSC chair nixed by CA". GMA News. Retrieved February 15, 2019.
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