Commission on Appointments

Commission on Appointments
18th Congress
History
Founded	1935 (1935) 1987 (1987) (reestablishment)
New session started	July 22, 2019 (2019-07-22)
Leadership
Chairman	Tito Sotto (NPC) since July 22, 2019
Vice Chairman	Ronaldo Zamora (PDP–Laban)
Majority Leader	Joel Mayo Almario (PDP–Laban)
Minority Leader	Franklin Drilon (Liberal)
Structure
Seats	24 members 1 ex officio presiding officer
Political groups	Majority (21)   PDP–Laban (5)   Nacionalista (4)   NUP (2)   PCFI (2)   CIBAC (1)   Lakas (1)   Liberal (1)   NPC (1)   Reporma (1)   Independent (2) Minority (3)   Akbayan (1)   Liberal (1)   NUP (1)
Meeting place
GSIS Building, Pasay, Metro Manila
Website
www.comappt.gov.ph

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The Commission on Appointments (Filipino: Komisyon sa Paghirang, 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.^[1]

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,^[2] the Commission on Appointments is an independent body from the legislature, though its membership is confined to members of Congress.^[1]

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.^[3]

The only government official that is exempted is the Vice President should he or she be appointed to any cabinet position. 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.^[4]

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
8. Members of the Regional and Consultative Commissions

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.^[5]

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 Complex in Pasay, the seat of the Senate.

Current membership[]

Members for the 18th Congress as of December 7, 2020.^[6] The original composition was released on August 6, 2019:^[7]

Officers[]

• Chairman: Senator Tito Sotto (in an ex officio role as Senate President)
• Vice Chairman: Representative Ronaldo Zamora
• Majority Floor Leader: Representative Joel Mayo Almario
  • Assistant Majority Floor Leaders:
    • Senator Joel Villanueva
    • Representative Gavini Pancho
• Minority Floor Leader: Senator Franklin Drilon
  • Assistant Minority Floor Leaders:
    • Representative Alex Advincula
    • Representative Rico Geron

Members[]

Members	Chamber	Party		District	Bloc
Alex Advincula	House of Representatives		NUP	Cavite–3rd	Minority
Joel Mayo Almario	House of Representatives		PDP–Laban	Davao Oriental–2nd	Majority
Genaro Alvarez	House of Representatives		NPC	Negros Occidental–6th	Majority
Abdulmunir Mundoc Arbison	House of Representatives		Nacionalista	Sulu–2nd	Majority
Mercedes Cagas	House of Representatives		Nacionalista	Davao del Sur	Majority
Jun Chipeco Jr.	House of Representatives		Nacionalista	Calamba	Majority
Luis Ferrer IV	House of Representatives		NUP	Cavite–6th	Majority
Rico Geron	House of Representatives		AGAP	Party-list	Majority
Bong Go	Senate		PDP–Laban	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Risa Hontiveros	Senate		Akbayan	Nationwide at-large	Minority
Panfilo Lacson	Senate		Reporma	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Imee Marcos	Senate		Nacionalista	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Florencio Noel	House of Representatives		An Waray	Party-list	Majority
Gavini Pancho	House of Representatives		NUP	Bulacan–2nd	Majority
Kiko Pangilinan	Senate		Liberal	Nationwide at-large	Minority
Koko Pimentel	Senate		PDP–Laban	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Grace Poe	Senate		Independent	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Bong Revilla	Senate		Lakas	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Josephine Sato	House of Representatives		Liberal	Occidental Mindoro	Majority
Tito Sotto[a][8]	Senate		NPC	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Francis Tolentino	Senate		PDP–Laban	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Joel Villanueva	Senate		CIBAC	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Cynthia Villar	Senate		Nacionalista	Nationwide at-large	Majority
Ronaldo Zamora	House of Representatives		PDP–Laban	San Juan	Majority
Juan Miguel Zubiri	Senate		Independent	Nationwide at-large	Majority

Party composition[]

Party		Senate	House	Total	%
	PDP–Laban	3	3	6	25%
	Nacionalista	2	2	4	17%
	NUP	0	3	3	13%
	Liberal	1	1	2	8%
	CIBAC	1	0	1	4%
	Lakas	1	0	1	4%
	NPC	0+1	1	1+1	4%+1
	AGAP	0	1	1	4%
	Akbayan Citizens' Action Party	1	0	1	4%
	An Waray	0	1	1	4%
	Reporma	1	0	1	4%
	Independent	2	0	2	8%
Total		12+1	12	24+1	100%+1

Bloc composition[]

Bloc	Senate	House	Total
Majority	10+1	11	21+1
Minority	2	1	3
Total	12+1	12	24+1

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

• Perfecto Yasay, for Secretary of Foreign Affairs^[9]
• Gina Lopez, for Secretary of Environment and Natural Resources^[10]
• Judy Taguiwalo, for Secretary of Social Welfare and Development^[11]
• Rafael V. Mariano, for Secretary of Agrarian Reform^[12]
• Paulyn Ubial, for Secretary of Health^[13]
• Michael Peloton, for Commission on Elections commissioner^[14]

Other administrations also had a few of its appointments rejected. These were:^[15]

• Ricardo Saludo, for chairman of the Civil Service Commission in 2009 by Gloria Macapagal Arroyo^[16]
• , for Secretary of Finance in 1993 by Fidel V. Ramos

See also[]

• Appointments Clause, clause in the United States Constitution where the commission is based from.

References[]

External links[]

• Official website