Manila RTC upholds Atienza's power to name PLM head

A Manila court upheld the authority of the mayor of Manila to appoint the President of the Pamantasan ng Lungsod ng Maynila (PLM).

Judge Amalia Andrade quashed for lack of merit the petition for preliminary injunction sought last Jan. 6 by PLM officials Victoria Edna Monzon and Fe Sumilong.

The two asked the Manila regional trial court to nullify Manila City Mayor Lito Atienza's appointment of Emmanuel Sison, current Secretary to the Mayor, as acting president of the university.

Sison was named to the top PLM post by Atienza through a special order he signed last Dec. 15.

Monzon and Sumilong questioned Atienza's authority to appoint Sison, arguing that it is the university's Board of Regents and not the city mayor who has the power to do so.

The court ruled that the PLM charter gives Atienza the authority to appoint the university president.

It also ruled that Sison's appointment as acting president was legal and that the special orders issued by him on Sumilong's and Monzon's re-assignment should not be considered illegal.

The injunction sought by the two school officials stemmed from two special orders earlier issued by Sison as acting PLM president temporarily relieving Sumilong of her functions as vice president for administration and Monzon as Dean of the College of Medicine on Dec. 21 and 29, 1999, respectively.

Both have since been assigned to the Office of the (PLM) president with Sumilong as Technical Assistant for Administrative Matters and Monzon as Technical Assistant on the Community Medicine Residency Training Program.