The legal doctrine of executive privilege

Is the Philippine government too fixated on investigations instead of writing laws for the good of the people? Is there no more separation of powers? Is the principle of check and balance being abused?

- Atty. Josephus B. Jimenez

At the rate that investigations are being conducted by both houses of Congress, many executive officials are diverted from their daily functions just to attend too many Senate and House investigations. And more than not, too many Officials are invited at the same time, spending six to 10 hours waiting to be interrogated. Their functions are left behind, many documents aren’t attended to, and many clients aren’t given immediate services.

How can the executive branch of the Philippine government avoid too much disturbances by the Senate and the House, via the conduct of so many investigations supposedly in aid of legislation, if such investigations appear to be used as a platform to embarrass the president and his administration?

The Supreme Court, as head of the judicial branch has explained the answer to this question along the fundamental constitutional principle of separation of powers and its cor-ollary principle of check and balance. This was in the case of then Senate President Franklin Drilon y. Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, eta 1, GR no 169777, the decision of which was promulgated on April 20, 2006. The writer of the decision is one of the most brilliant legal luminaries of the land, Madam Justice Conchita Carpio Morales.