Alit’s lawyers hit back

Lawyers of Bureau of Jail Management and Penology officer-in-charge Arturo Alit took issue with the claim of Senior Superintendent Josue Engaño’s camp that the former does not possess the legal personality to file a petition for quo warranto.

Lawyers Rogelio Montero and Arturo de los Reyes said, on the contrary, Alit has the legal personality since he has not lost his designation as officer-in-charge of BJMP. To support their contention, they cited the ruling of branch 216 of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court in the quo warranto case filed by Alit which stated that "there being no valid appointment to the contested position, petitioner Alit’s prior designation as officer-in-charge, BJMP, remains unless expressly revoked by the President or a permanent and valid appointment is made."

Engaño, through his legal counsel, claimed that Alit lost his temporary designation as officer-in-charge of the bureau when President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo appointed Engaño chief of BJMP.

Alit’s lawyers stressed Engaño is stopped from questioning Alit’s move since he used the same legal strategy three and-one-half years ago, when he filed a similar petition for quo warranto in branch 78 of the Quezon City Regional Trial Court under Judge Percival Mandap Lopez.

Engaño, who was then officer-in-charge of BJMP, filed a special action for quo warranto when former President Fidel Ramos appointed Senior Superintendent Miguel Bernante as chief of BJMP. The court found Bernante’s appointment null and void because he lacked the qualifications to become head of the bureau. Montero and De los Reyes also claimed that Engaño’s legal counsel misread the decision of the Supreme Court in the case Sevilla vs. Court of Appeals.

They said that in the higher court’s ruling, the petitioner, who was then acting city engineer of Cabanatuan City, failed to establish that respondent was a usurper of his position and that he was entitled to his position because of his qualification.