Gonzales vs. Marcos 65 SCRA 624 GR.NO.

L-31685 July 31, 1975

PARTIES:

PETITIONER: Ramon A. Gonzales RESPONDENTS: Imelda R. Marcos, as Chairman of the Cultural Center of the Philippines, Father Horacio de la Costa, I.P. Soliongco, Ernesto Rufino, Antonio Madrigal, and Andres Soriano as Members thereof PONENTE: Fernando, J.

FACTS:

President Marcos issued Executive Order No. 30, which is a trust that provides for the construction of a national theater, a national music hall and an arts building and facilities that would be collectively known as the Cultural Center of the Philippines. The project aimed to promote, preserve, enhance, and develop the Philippines' cultural heritage. First Lady Imelda Marcos headed the Board of Trustees entrusted in building the project and they were also the respondents in this petition for certiorari alleging the encroachment of EO 30 on the legislative powers of the executive branch and the question of whether the funds would come from taxpayers' money.

ISSUE:

Whether the creation of Executive Order No. 30 is constitutional.

RULING:

Yes. The Court ruled that the President did not encroach on the legislative power in issuing EO 30 because he was merely acting in accordance with the constitutional provision to promote arts and letters (Sec. 4, Art. XIV of the Constitution). Therefore, the creation of the

Cultural Center through the funding of donations from private entities and the United States gives the President the authority, under the doctrine of parens patriae, to implement the project for the benefit of the Filipino people.