SC denies Ilocos mayor's habeas data plea on private armies

The Supreme Court has upheld an Ilocos Norte court order denying Dingras, Ilocos Norte Mayor Marynette Gamboa's petition for the issuance of habeas data.

 

In a 20-page decision penned by Associate Justice Ma. Lourdes Sereno, the high court sitting en banc said a "legitimate and compelling" state interest prevailed over Gamboa's right to privacy.

 

The writ of habeas data is a court remedy available to "any person whose right to privacy in life, liberty, or security is violated or threatened by an unlawful act or omission by a public official or employee, or of a private individual or entity engaged in the gathering, collecting or storing of data or information regarding the person, family, home and correspondence of the aggrieved party."

 

Gamboa sought the issuance of the writ of habeas data after the provincial police office in Ilocos Norte submitted to the Zeñarosa Commission documents classifying her as "someone who keeps a private army group, purportedly without the benefit of data verification.”

 

The Zeñarosa Commission was created under former President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to address the alleged existence of private armies in the country.

 

Gamboa insisted that the PNP's alleged "unverified" documents be destroyed and that all other information about her forwarded to higher PNP officials be withdrawn.

 

In the same petition, Gamboa said the police should refrain from forwarding unverified reports against her and making "baseless reports." She sought the rectification of the damage cause by the reports on her reputation.

 

Compelling state interest 

 

In upholding the denial of Gamboa's petition, the high court said that “the dismantling of private army groups far outweighs the alleged intrusion on the private life of Gamboa, especially when the collection and forwarding by the PNP of information against her was pursuant to a lawful mandate.” 

 

The high court said the police's forwarding to the Zeñarosa Commission the documents on Gamboa's supposed private army even without prior notice to her did not violate her right to privacy.

 

"[What the police did was an] inherent and crucial component of intelligence-gathering and investigation," the SC said.

 

The court said she failed to overcome the presumption of regularity when the police did its duty, and added that Gamboa failed to show "substantive evidence" to show her inclusion on the list made her and her supporters susceptible to harassment and increased police surveillance.

 

Refuting Gamboa's claim that the report was "unverified," the high court said: "Safeguards were put in place to make sure that information collected maintained its integrity and accuracy."

 

The court also said Gamboa's request for the issuance of a writ of habeas data was "unnecessary and improper," and that there were other remedies that Gamboa could have used instead if she thought her reputation was indeed damaged by the reports. — AE/RSJ, GMA News