The Office of the Solicitor General (OSG) on Tuesday, 19 May, asked the Supreme Court to dismiss the petition filed by former House Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez seeking to compel President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to undergo physical and mental examinations, including a hair follicle drug test, which was filed on 15 April.
The OSG emphasized that there are insufficient legal and constitutional grounds to require the President to comply with the request and publicly disclose the results, arguing that such a move would violate presidential immunity, which protects the President from suits during his term.
Further, the OSG argued that the petitioners lack legal standing to file the case, noting that they merely identified themselves as taxpayers, voters, and concerned citizens, which does not meet the threshold required to initiate a suit.
Moreover, government lawyers said the petitioners failed to demonstrate a direct and personal injury as required under the doctrine of locus standi. They also argued that the President cannot be subjected to judicial compulsion to undergo physical, mental, or drug examinations.
The OSG also clarified that the reliefs being sought involve discretionary acts that cannot be compelled through a writ of mandamus, since the requirements for such a remedy — including a clear legal right and a ministerial duty — were not established.
The government lawyers likewise cited the case of De Leon v. Duterte, in which petitions seeking to probe the President’s health were also dismissed by the Supreme Court.