Accomplishment Report of the Public Attorney's Office

Republika ng Pilipinas Kagawaran ng Katarungan Tanggapan ng Manananggol Pambayan

(PUBLIC ATTORNEY’S OFFICE) DOJ Agencies Building, NIA Rd. cor. East Ave. 1104 Diliman, Quezon City Telephone Nos. 929-90-10/929-94-36; FAX Nos. 927-68-10/ 926-28-78

ACCOMPLISHMENT REPORT OF THE PUBLIC ATTORNEY’S OFFICE FOR THE PERIOD COVERING JANUARY TO JUNE 2012

With ardent passion and dedication to its mandate, as provided under the Constitution and the law and also in the name of public service, the Public Attorney’s Office (PAO) remains to be the last resort of our indigent litigants, the oppressed, marginalized and underprivileged members of the society in their pursuit of justice. This accomplishment report speaks how dutiful and fervent the office is in catering the needs of the underprivileged members of our society for free legal services.

Its ultimate goal is to ensure that all indigent Filipino people are able to enjoy what is provided under the Constitution that “Free access to courts and quasi-judicial bodies and adequate legal assistance shall not be denied to any person by reason of poverty”. Social Justice also dictates that those who have less in life should have more in law. As such, the PAO will remain steadfast to its mandate and continue to deliver prompt legal service to its indigent clients.

The accomplishments of the PAO, as reflected by this report, undoubtedly show that PAO is consistent in rendering exemplary public service. Its outstanding performance, as shown by the total number of clients it assisted and its winning rates, are indeed remarkable. The endeavors of the Office, as marked by its significant accomplishments in the first semester of 2012, are just among the humble but earnest contributions of this agency in strengthening the criminal justice system and government service in our country.

The PAO vows to remain faithfully compliant with H. E. President Benigno S. Aquino III’s Social Contract Agenda which include the directive to “provide justice for all”. The PAO, as advocate of the indigents, will continue to deliver and fulfill its mandate as the principal law office of the government in providing free legal service and assistance to qualified clients in criminal, civil, labor, administrative and other quasi-judicial cases.

Although not asking for any recognition in return for all the pains and hard works it has done in order to deliver prompt legal service to its indigent clients, the PAO and the Chief Public Attorney have received several awards and recognition from various organizations. While it is of great honor, the Public Attorney’s Office will never be satisfied and it will continue to serve the public until justice is served to those who deserve it and will always be a government institution dutiful to its mandate towards the attainment of the “Matuwid na Landas Program” of President Benigno S. Aquino, III.

SIGNIFICANT ACCOMPLISHMENTS

A. CLIENTS ASSISTED AND CASES HANDLED

The statistical figures below show the total number of indigent clients assisted and the total number of cases (judicial and quasi- judicial) handled by the PAO and its proportionate relation to the 1,532 lawyers for the period covering January to June, 2012.

Total No. of Clients Assisted 3,296,969 Total No. of Cases Handled 576,280 Average No. of Clients Assisted by Each Lawyer 2,152 Average No. of Cases Handled by Each Lawyer 408

B. ACQUITTALS/DISMISSAL OF CASES AND OTHER FAVORABLE DISPOSITIONS

In spite of their overwhelming case loads, the public attorneys ably represented indigent accused in court and facilitated the release and favorable disposition of cases of indigent clients of PAO, by acquittals, dismissal of cases, or for some other reasons, their cases were favorably disposed of, as shown in the graph below.

The graph above shows the figures of acquittals, dismissal and other favorable dispositions in criminal cases for the period January to June 2012, totaling 75,913.

C. WINNING AND APPEALED CASES

For criminal cases alone, a total of 67 cases were favorably disposed of during the period of January to June 2012 by the PAO – Special and Appealed Cases Service. The tables below show the breakdown of figures, to wit:

Acquittals from Reclusion Perpetua 40 Acquittals from Reclusion Temporal 27 TOTAL 67

Aside from criminal cases, the Special and Appealed Cases Service (SACS) also handles civil and special cases such as appeals from the decision of NLRC, SSS and GSIS. In those cases handled, a total of 129 favorable dispositions were obtained by PAO-SACS from January to June 2012.

D. JAIL VISITATION AND DECONGESTION PROGRAM

This outreach program for inmates has been strengthened by the PAO-Central Office Legal, Medical, Dental and Optical Jail Visitation Program. This program was started in 2007 and is being continuously conducted in various jails in the Philippines. The tables below show the output of the project for the first semester of 2012, to wit:

NO. OF NO. OF NO. OF TOTAL NO. BENEFICIARIES BENEFICIARIES BENEFICIARIES OF VISITED JAIL DATE LEG FOR LEGAL FOR MEDICAL FOR DENTAL INMATES ASSISTANCE ASSISTANCE ASSISTANCE RELEASED (ADVICE) Makati City 1 February 216 137 49 11 Jail 1ST 14, 2012 2 Pasay City Jail 292 251 44 27 Malabon City February 3 2ND 205 264 90 143 Jail 16, 2012 Maximum 4 29 13 6 Compound March 30, 3RD 36 Medium 2012 5 60 94 20 Compound San Jose del 6 36 86 23 9 Monte City Jail April 12, Sta. Maria, 4TH 2012 7 Bulacan City 6 6 1 5 Jail Caloocan City 8 197 239 76 13 Jail April 13, 5TH Valenzuela 2012 9 60 175 64 12 City Jail

3 Malolos City Jail (Provincial 10 145 157 94 14 Civil Security April 25, 6TH & Jail 2012 Management) Meycauayan 11 0 39 16 n/a City Jail Quezon City Jail – Female 12 148 205 29 1 Dorm Camp May 23, 7th Karingal 2012 Molave Youth 13 0 73 42 n/a Home Maximum 14 94 7 n/a Compound May 24, 8th 99 Medium 2012 15 132 18 n/a Compound 16 Pasay City Jail 80 177 70 n/a June 26, th Makati City 9 17 2012 48 144 28 n/a Jail Manila City Jail – Male 73 101 80 n/a Dorm 18 Manila City June 27, 10th Jail – Female 2012 147 127 44 n/a Dorm Manila Youth 19 33 94 50 n/a Reception TOTAL 1,874 2,608 851 271

E. LEGAL/INQUEST PROCEEDINGS ASSISTANCE

On their scheduled duties, the public attorneys and staff of the PAO- Central Office have alternately been providing legal and inquest proceedings assistance even during night time, weekends and Holidays since October 2009. For this purpose, the PAO hotline, 929-9436 (local 106 or 107 during office hours and local 159 beyond office hours) is open to the public 24/7.

In September 2010, the coverage of this program was widened for the benefit of the people that are being served by the regional and district offices of the PAO nationwide. Since then, the said offices have been rendering legal assistance (e.g. legal advice, attending to the legal needs of suspects in the police stations within the territorial jurisdiction of the concerned PAO regional/district offices) up to 10:00 p.m. everyday (including weekends and Holidays) but the assigned PAO inquest public attorneys and staff therein remain on call after 10:00 p.m. during their respective scheduled duties whenever there is an inquest in the said police stations.

A total of 7,800 clients benefited from the services provided by the PAO consisting of inquest assistance, legal advice/counseling and documentation at the above duty stations covering the period January to June 2012.

4 F. CASE LOAD STATISTICAL REPORT AND ACCOMPLISHMENT

From January to June, 2012, the PAO handled a total of 360,691 criminal cases; of this total, 91,768 are newly received cases and 268,923 are carry- over from the previous year.

Out of the 79,846 terminated criminal cases from January to June 2012, 60,165 cases or about 75.35% thereof were favorably disposed by respective Public Attorneys assigned to handle the same.

For the period January to June 2012, the office has handled a total of 44,420 civil cases consisting of newly received and carry-over cases. During the same period, a total of 6,297 were terminated.

The PAO handled a total of 7,895 administrative cases consisting of 6,675 carry-over cases and 1,220 newly received cases from January to June, 2012. A total of 883 cases were terminated.

For the period January to June, 2012, the office handled a total of 46,809 cases at the Prosecutor’s level; 12,989 of which are newly received and 33,820 are carried over from the previous year. Out of the said total number of cases, 9,753 were terminated.

In Labor cases, the PAO was able to handle a total of 18,485 complaints from January to June, 2012, 2,308 of which were disposed of.

The office also renders mediation and conciliation services as part of its quasi-judicial function. For the period covering January to June 2012, it handled a total of 233,154 disputes and resolved a total of 119,495 thereof.

The office has extended limited services to accused in criminal cases on arraignment, pre-trial, promulgation of sentence only and in other stages of the case. It assisted a total of 418,246 accused for the first semester of 2012.

The office has rendered non-judicial services to 1,648,089 clients such as legal documentation, counseling and administration of oaths for the period January to June, 2012.

In the barangay outreach activities conducted by the office from January to June 2012, it assisted a total of 57,989 clients.

9 Under Republic Act No. 9262 (R.A. No. 9262), otherwise known as the Anti-Violence Against Women and their Children Act and Republic Act No. 9344 (R.A. No. 9344), otherwise known as the Juvenile Justice and Welfare System Act, as well as the subsequent pertinent issuances, the PAO is specifically mandated by the law to extend legal assistance to women and their children who are victims of violence and to facilitate the release and proper disposition of Children in Conflict with the Law (CICL) , particularly those who were fifteen years old or below at the time of the alleged commission of the crime. To this mandated task, the PAO is continuously giving special attention to the cause of women and children in so far as the criminal justice system is concerned. The graphs below show the number of women and children assisted by the PAO for the period January to June 2012.

10 For the first semester of 2012, the office handled a total of 71,046 and 16,794 cases involving women and CICL, respectively.

The graphs above show that from January to June 2012, a total of 17,136 and 4,997 cases were terminated involving women and CICL, respectively.

The above data show that the PAO successfully exceeded and surpassed its target for the first semester of 2012.

In spite of the limited number of lawyers and support personnel of the agency, not to mention its meager budgetary allocation, the PAO has managed to carry out its mandate with rewarding output.

It is humbly submitted that the above data manifest and indicate the continuous trust and faith of the people in the performance of the agency.

It is viewed that when the agency performs its duties and responsibilities with the highest standard of efficiency and dedication, it gives its humble share in converting and transforming public apathy and chaos into trust and faith to the criminal justice system and ultimately to the entire administration.

G. THE OFFICE OF THE CHIEF PUBLIC ATTORNEY

1. The Office of the Chief Public Attorney received/answered 28,599 communications from January to June, 2012. The breakdown is as follows:

11 I. Communications to / from CPA Rueda- Total No. of 28,599 Acosta Communications A. Communications from Executive Division 7,367 1. Appointments 199 2. Memoranda 247 3. Memorandum Orders 139 4. Memorandum Circulars 1 5. Office Orders 69 6. Reassignment Orders 31 7. Travel Orders 4 8. Special Orders 0 9. Other Communications 9.1. Signed by CPA 1,500 9.2. Signed by Executive Lawyers 5,177 B. Communications from Other Services 1,876 1. Administrative Service 1,095 2. Legal Research Service 375 3. Field Operations and Statistics Service 137 4. Financial Planning and Management 81 Service 5. Special and Appealed Cases Service 188 C. Communications from Regional Offices 3,404 1. Region I 142 2. Region II 114 3. Region III 344 4. Region IV 599 5. Region V 264 6. Region VI 223 7. Region VII 160 8. Region VIII 138 9. Region IX / ARMM 149 10. Region X 153 11. Region XI 120 12. Region XII 105 13. CAR 67 14. CARAGA 144 15. NCR 682 D. Communications from OP, OVP, Senate & HOR 175 E. Communications from Other Offices 13,341 1. Department of Justice 271

12 2. Supreme Court 1,314 3. Court of Appeals 7,216 4. National Labor Relations Commission 651 5. Other Communications 3,533 6. Applicants 356 619 F. Publications 77 1. Say Mo Attorney? 267 2. Manila Times 275 3. Bulgar 1,817 G. EMAILS 1,245 1. Legal Assistance 465 2. Monthly Reports 20 3. Applicants 87 4. Other emails

2. The Office of the Chief Public Attorney served 8,946 clients during this period.

3. The Chief Public Attorney attended the following local trainings and seminars and/or served as resource person, thereto:

a. Lecturer, Seminar-Workshop on the Codes and References for the Public Attorney’s Office, sponsored by the American Bar Association-Rule of Law Initiative; June 19, 2012, Laoag City; May 14, 2012, Cebu City; April 16, 2012, Davao City;

b. Lecturer, Lecture on Katarungang Pambarangay for the Local Government of Bacoor, Cavite, February 27, 2012, Alima School, Bacoor, Cavite.

4. The Chief Public Attorney personally handled and/or led the following cases and/or rendered legal assistance to the following individuals, to wit:

a. The 71 civil cases filed by the PAO against Sulpicio Lines, Inc. (SLI) on behalf of the victims of the M/V Princess of the Stars maritime tragedy, are on continuous trial at RTC-Branch 51, Manila; same with the 64 civil cases filed against SLI at RTC- Branch 10, Cebu City. The criminal case for Reckless Imprudence is also ongoing at RTC-Branch 5, Manila.

5. The Chief Public Attorney received the following prestigious awards, to wit:

a. Darling of the Press Award from the Philippine Movie Press Club (PMPC), given during the 28th PMPC Star Awards for Movies, on March 14, 2012, at the Meralco Theater, Ortigas City; 13

b. Gawad Tanglaw Award. Public Atorni*, the reality mediation program being hosted by Chief Public Attorney Persida V. Rueda-Acosta was conferred the Gawad Tanglaw Award on March 15, 2012 at the Perpetual Help College in Las Piñas City. Gawad Tanglaw stands for Gawad Tagapuring mga Akademisyan ng Aninong Gumagalaw, which is an organization of renowned members of the academe;

c. Certificate of Merit awarded by the Office of Scholarships and Student Services of the University of the Philippines, Diliman, Quezon City, for being a University Scholar (for the Second Semester of School Year 2010-2011) in the Ph.D-SD course at the College of Social Work and Community Development, given on February 22, 2012 at the Cine Adarna (UP Film Institute), UP-Diliman;

d. Gawad Chancellor from the Honorable Chancellor Caesar A. Saloma on behalf of the University of the Philippines-Diliman, for being a student achiever and recipient of the 2011 Most Outstanding Public Servant Award from the Gawad Amerika Foundation, given on February 22, 2012 at the Cine Adarna (UP Film Institute), UP-Diliman;

6. Seminar-Workshop on the Codes and References for the Public Attorney’s Office Conducted

The “Seminar-Workshop on the Codes and References for the Public Attorney’s Office” was conducted last June 19, 2012 in Laoag City. This activity, which was sponsored by the American Bar Association-Rule of Law (ABA-ROLI), was attended by the Regional Public Attorney, District Public Attorneys and Officers-in-Charge of the PAO regional/district offices in the Ilocos Region. The said seminar-workshop was also held on May 14, 2012 in Cebu City and on April 16, 2012 in Davao City, for the Regional Public Attorneys, District Public Attorneys and Officers-in-Charge of the PAO regional/district offices in the Visayas and Mindanao, respectively.

7. Spot inspection conducted

Spot inspection activities led by the Chief Public Attorney, pursuant to Department Order No. 109, dated March 8, 2005, and were conducted at the following PAO district offices on various dates of March 2012, to wit:

* Public Atorni, was used to be shown on TV5 but is now being aired on Aksyon TV, every Monday at 9:20 p.m., at no cost to the PAO, for the program is produced by the Associated Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).

District Office Date of Inspection 1) San Mateo, Rizal District Office March 9, 2012 2) Marikina City District Office March 9, 2012 3) Antipolo City District Office March 9, 2012

The spot inspections conducted on the aforementioned date generated these favorable results, viz:

a) Opening of PAO-Rodriguez District Office, sponsored by the Municipal Mayor of Rodriguez, the Honorable Cecilio Hernandez; and b) Transfer of PAO-Antipolo District Office to a more spacious unit, sponsored by the City Mayor of Antipolo, the Honorable Danilo Leyble.

District Office Date of Inspection 1) Rosario, Batangas District Office March 13, 2012

District Office Date of Inspection 1) Batangas City District Office March 15, 2012 2) Gumaca, Quezon District Office March 15, 2012 3) Calauag, Quezon District Office March 15, 2012

District Office Date of Inspection 1) Lucena City District Office March 16, 2012 2) Mauban, Quezon District Office March 16, 2012 3) Infanta, Quezon District Office March 16, 2012 4) San Pedro, Laguna District Office March 16, 2012

Spot inspections are being conducted to ensure proper monitoring and accountability of PAO field offices.

The spot inspections that were conducted last February 2012 are stated below:

District Office Date of Inspection 1) Tagaytay City District Office February 20, 2012

District Office Date of Inspection 1) Tagaytay City District Office February 21, 2012 2) Nasugbu, Batangas District Office February 21, 2012 3) Lemery, Batangas District Office February 21, 2012 4) Taal, Batangas District Office February 21, 2012 5) Balayan, Batangas District Office February 21, 2012 6) Lipa City, Batangas District Office February 21, 2012 7) Tanauan, Batangas District Office February 21, 2012

8. Codes and References for the Public Attorney’s Office Launched

The “Codes and References for the Public Attorney’s Office” was launched last February 13, 2012 at the PAO-Central Office, with the

15 Honorable Secretary of Justice Leila M. De Lima as Guest of Honor/Speaker. The said activity was also graced by Mr. Scott Ciment, Esq., Country Director of the American Bar Association-Rule of Law Initiative (ABA-ROLI). ABA-ROLI funded the publication and launch of the said PAO manual.

9. Legal Assistance to Victims of Typhoon Sendong

On January 3, 2012, 82 victims of typhoon Sendong were given legal assistance and 102 documents (e.g., affidavits of loss) were made in favor of the said clients of the PAO in an evacuation center at Tibasak, Macasandig, and Cagayan de Oro.

Earlier, on December 22, 23, 26-29, 2011, through this endeavor, the public attorneys in Cagayan de Oro and Iligan City were able to render the following pro bono legal services, to wit:

No. of typhoon Sendong victims given legal 1,884 assistance No. of documents made 3,967

This is in connection with PAO Memorandum Order No. 293 dated December 19, 2011, issued by Chief Public Attorney Persida V. Rueda-Acosta, directing the public attorneys of Northern Mindanao and Dumaguete City to put up legal aid clinics at the evacuation centers within the territorial jurisdiction of their respective districts;

10. Best Practices of the Public Attorney’s Office: SOJ’s Choice

The presentation given by Chief Public Attorney Persida V. Rueda-Acosta on the Best Practices of the Public Attorney’s Office was selected by the Secretary of Justice herself, the Hon. Leila M. De Lima, as one of the five best presentations during the DOJ’s Executive Planning Session on January 12-13, 2012 at Taal Vista Hotel, Tagaytay City;

H. FINANCIAL RESOURCES

The approved appropriation for the Office for the first semester of 2012 is Php 1,457,100,000.00. SARO releases amounted to Php 172,023,000.00 intended to cover funding for SSL 3 tranche 3 and salaries of newly created positions. The amount of Php 2,200,768.00 was also released for the Terminal Leave benefits of retired employees.

From January to June, 2012, the amount of Php 877,011,291.00 was obligated.

I. LIBRARY SERVICES

The PAO, through its library services, envisions giving better and more efficient means of assisting its clientele through modern and advance information-assisted technology such as the Internet, modern fax machines, and telephone units for a fast transmission of output.

For January to June 2012, a total of 1,299 copies of legal books and reference materials amounting to Php 356,779.00 were purchased and distributed to PAO Regional Offices and District Offices. The PAO also has a yearly subscription of the Lex Libiris Bulletin which is a compilation of laws, jurisprudence circulars, memoranda, etc. in a compact disc (CD) which is being supplied by CD Technologies Asia Inc.

The PAO Library, through its personnel, was able to collate a total of 182 news releases from twelve (12) various broadsheets and tabloids for the first semester of 2012.

Through its tri-media linkages, the PAO has continuously been rendering legal advice to the general public through the newspaper columns Say Mo Attorney? in People’s Tonight; Atorni First in Pinoy Parazzi; Dear PAO, published in The Manila Times daily, and Magtanong Kay Attorney, also daily, in Bulgar. A total of 74 articles for Say Mo Attorney?, 178 articles for Dear PAO, 179 articles for Magtanong kay Attorney, and 49 articles for Atorni First were published and clipped into file from January to June, 2012.

J. OFFICE EQUIPMENT

For the period covering January to June, 2012, the PAO purchased and distributed the following office equipment, to wit:

* Filing Cabinet (4 drawers) 27 pcs Note: From 2011 budget, delivered in 2012 * Filing Cabinet (2 drawers) 5 pcs Note: From 2011 budget, delivered in 2012 * Biometric Time Recorder 94 units * HP printer 28 units

* Chairs Swivel 22 units

Monoblock 150 units

17 * Fax Machine 2 units * Refrigerator 1 unit * Table 14 units * Computer Chair 32 units * 4-Wheel Trolley Cart 2 units * Floormate 20’ 1 unit

Since her assumption into office, it has been the battle cry of the Chief Public Attorney to put into oblivion the traditional impression with public offices where there is a dearth of office supply and obsolete and/or worn out office equipment. With the purchase of the foregoing office furnishings, such as chairs, filing cabinets, tables, and posture chairs, PAO personnel were able to perform their duties in a more office-friendly environment. Needless to say, it somehow contributed to the continuously swelling public trust to the services of the PAO.

In addition, the computerization program of the office saw the continuous upgrading of existing computer units in order to cope up with the fast changing times and technology.

K. TECHNICAL OPERATIONS

1. PAO-NLRC SUB-STATION

By virtue of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the Public Attorney’s Office and the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) located at Banawe in Quezon City, the PAO maintains its sub- station at the NLRC to serve its clients.

The sub-station facilitates the rendition of legal assistance to complaining workers before the NLRC and aims to expedite the proceedings; hence, it makes its services more accessible to complaining workers.

The efficiency and effectiveness of the office have been proven for years. For the period covering January to June 2012, a total of 4,875 clients were accommodated and given legal assistance.

2. RESEARCH AND COMMUNICATION

For the first semester of 2012, a total of 965 research works were duly accomplished by the Public Attorney’s Office through the Legal Research Service.

For the said period, the PAO, through the Legal Research Service, was able to answer 75 out of 144 legal queries and these 18 were published in newspapers of national circulation. These include legal questions from the public which were either directly addressed or referred to the PAO. The sudden upsurge in the number of research works was brought about by the increasing public trust coupled with consistent tri-media linkages as means of education and information dissemination of the PAO. The accessibility of the Chief Public Attorney herself for public services has, for one reason, made a great difference.

3. INTENSIFYING INFORMATION DISSEMINATION Aside from its linkage to print media for public education and information dissemination, the PAO has also cooperated with the broadcast media (radio and television) to strengthen and sustain its legal services operations.

Toward this end, public attorneys continuously provide on-the- air, legal counseling on DZIQ Radyo Inquirer, DZRV (Radio Veritas), Radio Mindanao Network (RMN), DWDD-AFP (Ugnayan ng Anghel ng Masa), GMA 7 (Imbestigador and Unang Hirit), DZMM, ABS-CBN 2 (Aksyon Ngayon, Exklusibong Explosibong Expose (XXX), Umagang Kay Ganda, DZRH, DZRV (Radyo ng Bayan), TV 5 (Public Atorni, Face to Face) and almost all other radio and television stations. The same activities are also undertaken by selected public attorneys in the different regions.

PERSIDA V. RUEDA-ACOSTA Chief Public Attorney