I was about to email my article about the dialogue between the members of the Integrated Bar of Lanao del Sur and the Marawi Compensation Board when an acquaintance asked me to hold it. He said there was an “explosive” document that a civil society organization would send me that would affect my mindset about the raging issue. I was curious.

It turned out to be a position paper assailing the validity and appropriateness of the MCB’s use of the valuation system of the Provincial Assessor’s Office of Lanao del Sur in computing the amounts to be awarded to the Marawi siege victims.

This was one of the admissions this writer extracted from the MCB in the dialogue. They admitted in no uncertain terms and without compunction that they used as the basis for assessing the data and records of the Provincial Assessor of Lanao del Sur.

During the exchanges, I recall that a Board Member mentioned Marawi being a component city of the province, thus tacitly justifying their decision. I retorted that this was correct, but the classification was only for political or electoral purposes and not for taxation or property valuation.

In an earlier article, we debunked this as irregular and illegal. The valuation of a property in the countryside or towns cannot be compared to the valuation of the same property located in a metropolis. It’s an apples and oranges thing.

Allow me to quote the pertinent portion of the ponencia given to me.

“Provincial Assessment seemed to have not been Published.

“Section 33 of the Provincial Ordinance No. 02 Series of 2021 states that:

“Section 33. Effectivity — The ordinance shall take effect 15 days after publication in a local newspaper of general circulation and its implementation shall commence in the year following the completion of the General Revision and property classification in the Province of Lanao del Sur.

“From the foregoing, a two-step process must occur before the said Ordinance can take effect and be implemented.

“First, it has to be published in a local newspaper of general circulation. Only then, 15 days thereafter shall it take effect. Unfortunately, nothing in the set of documents attached to the Provincial Assessment (Ordinance No. 02 Series of 2021) would show that there was indeed a compliance of the publication requirement.

“The publication of laws or ordinances, in this case, is indispensable for its enforceability. According to Article 2 of the New Civil Code of the Philippines, laws shall take effect after 15 days following the completion of their publication either in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation in the Philippines.

“‘Ignorance of the law excuses no one from compliance therewith.’ This legal maxim underscores the importance of knowing when a law takes effect. Once a law becomes effective, the public is deemed to have constructive notice and is expected to comply with it. On the other hand, nonpublication renders the law (or ordinance in this matter) without any force and effect.

“Second, its implementation shall commence in the year following the completion of the General Revision and property classification of the Province. In other words, the mass revision of all the properties within the province’s jurisdiction must be completed first before the said ordinance shall be made applicable. Again, there was no documentary support to show compliance with the same.

“In this case, the Ordinance specifically requires that there be first a general revision of property classification. This requirement is covered by Chapter III of BLGF’s Manual on Real Property Appraisal and Assessment Operation, which provides that: A general revision of real property assessments shall be considered completed after all the fieldwork in the municipality, province, or city have been completed and corresponding Field Appraisal and Assessment Sheets (FAAS) of all properties have been prepared and duly approved; and the data recorded in the records of assessments.

“Subsequently, written notices of revised assessments shall be sent to real property owners.”

More in following columns.

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