BUKLOD NG KAWANING EIIB VS EXECUTIVE SECRETARY RONALDO ZAMORA

FACTS: During the time of President Corazon Aquino, she created the Economic Intelligence and
Investigation Bureau (EIIB) to primarily conduct anti-smuggling operations in areas outside the
jurisdiction of the Bureau of Customs. In the year 2000, President Estrada issued an order deactivating
the EIIB. He subsequently ordered the employees of EIIB to be separated from the service. Thereafter,
he created the Presidential Anti-Smuggling Task Force “Aduana”, which EIIB employees claim to be
essentially the same as EIIB. The employees of EIIB, through the Buklod ng Kawaning EIIB, invoked the
Supreme Court’s power of judicial review in questioning the said orders. EIIB employees maintained
that the president has no power to abolish a public office, as that is a power solely lodged in the
legislature; and that the abolition violates their constitutional right to security of tenure.
ISSUE: Whether or not the petition has merit.
HELD: No. It is a general rule that the power to abolish a public office is lodged with the legislature.
The exception is when it comes to agencies, bureaus, and other offices under the executive
department, the president may deactivate them pursuant to control power over such offices, unless
such office is created by the Constitution. This is also germane to the president’s power to reorganize
the Office of the President. Basis of such power also has its roots in two laws i.e., PD 1772 and PD 1416.
These decrees expressly grant the President of the Philippines the continuing authority to reorganize
the national government, which includes the power to group, consolidate bureaus and agencies, to
abolish offices, to transfer functions, to create and classify functions, services and activities and to
standardize salaries and materials.
Also, it cannot be said that there is bad faith in the abolition of EIIB. EIIB allocations has always
exceeded P100 million per year. To save the government some money, it needed to abolish it and
replace it with TF Aduana which has for its allocation just P50 million. Further, TYF Aduana is invested
more power that EIIB never had, i.e., search and seizure and arrest.
Lastly, EEIB employees’ right to security of tenure is not violated. Since there is no bad faith in the
abolition of EIIB, such abolition is not infirm. Valid abolition of offices is neither removal nor separation
of the incumbents. If the public office ceases to exist, there is no separation or dismissal to speak of.
Indeed, there is no such thing as an absolute right to hold office. Except constitutional offices which
provide for special immunity as regards salary and tenure, no one can be said to have any vested right
in an office or its salary.