Liban vs.

Gordon
G.R. No. 175352. July 15, 2009
CARPIO, J.

FACTS:
Petitioners filed with this Court a Petition to Declare Richard J. Gordon as Having Forfeited His Seat
in the Senate. Petitioners are officers of the Board of Directors of the Quezon City Red Cross
Chapter while respondent is Chairman of the Philippine National Red Cross (PNRC) Board of
Governors.

During respondent’s incumbency as a member of the Senate of the Philippines, he was elected
Chairman of the PNRC during the 23 February 2006 meeting of the PNRC Board of Governors.
Petitioners allege that by accepting the chairmanship of the PNRC Board of Governors, respondent
has ceased to be a member of the Senate as provided in Section 13, Article VI of the Constitution.

Petitioners cite Camporedondo v. NLRC, which held that the PNRC is a government-owned or
controlled corporation. Petitioners claim that in accepting and holding the position of Chairman
of the PNRC Board of Governors, respondent has automatically forfeited his seat in the Senate,
pursuant to Flores v. Drilon, which held that incumbent national legislators lose their elective posts
upon their appointment to another government office.

ISSUE:
Whether the office of the PNRC Chairman is a government office or an office in a government-
owned or controlled corporation for purposes of the prohibition in Section 13, Article VI of the
Constitution.

RULING:
No, PNRC is a private organization performing public functions. The PNRC must not only be, but
must also be seen to be, autonomous, neutral and independent in order to conduct its activities
in accordance with the Fundamental Principles. The PNRC must not appear to be an instrument or
agency that implements government policy; otherwise, it cannot merit the trust of all and cannot
effectively carry out its mission as a National Red Cross Society.12 It is imperative that the PNRC
must be autonomous, neutral, and independent in relation to the State.

To ensure and maintain its autonomy, neutrality, and independence, the PNRC cannot be owned
or controlled by the government. Indeed, the Philippine government does not own the PNRC. The
PNRC does not have government assets and does not receive any appropriation from the
Philippine Congress.13 The PNRC is financed primarily by contributions from private individuals
and private entities obtained through solicitation campaigns organized by its Board of Governors.

Thus, the PNRC is a privately owned, privately funded, and privately run charitable organization.
The PNRC is not a government-owned or controlled corporation.
 [G.R. No. 175352. January 18, 2011
LEONARDO-DE CASTRO, J.

Based on the above, the sui generis status of the PNRC is now sufficiently established. Although it is neither a
subdivision, agency, or instrumentality of the government, nor a government-owned or -controlled corporation or a
subsidiary thereof, as succinctly explained in the Decision of July 15, 2009, so much so that respondent, under the
Decision, was correctly allowed to hold his position as Chairman thereof concurrently while he served as a Senator,
such a conclusion does not ipso facto imply that the PNRC is a “private corporation” within the contemplation of the
provision of the Constitution, that must be organized under the Corporation Code. As correctly mentioned by Justice
Roberto A. Abad, the sui generis character of PNRC requires us to approach controversies involving the PNRC on a
case-to-case basis.

In sum, the PNRC enjoys a special status as an important ally and auxiliary of the government in the humanitarian field
in accordance with its commitments under international law. This Court cannot all of a sudden refuse to recognize its
existence, especially since the issue of the constitutionality of the PNRC Charter was never raised by the parties. It
bears emphasizing that the PNRC has responded to almost all national disasters since 1947, and is widely known to
provide a substantial portion of the country’s blood requirements. Its humanitarian work is unparalleled. The Court
should not shake its existence to the core in an untimely and drastic manner that would not only have negative
consequences to those who depend on it in times of disaster and armed hostilities but also have adverse effects on
the image of the Philippines in the international community. The sections of the PNRC Charter that were declared
void must therefore stay.]