Executive Order No. 496




MALACAÑAN PALACE MANILA BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE PHILIPPINES [ EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 496, December 09, 1991 ] INSTITUTING PROCEDURES AND CRITERIA FOR THE SELECTION AND THE RECOMMENDATION OF NOMINEES FOR APPOINTMENT TO VACANT POSITIONS IN THE PROFESSIONAL REGULATORY BOARDS UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF THE PROFESSIONAL REGULATION COMMISSION. WHEREAS, Section 5, subsection (i), of Presidential Decree No. 223 provides that the Professional Regulation Commission shall “submit and recommend to the President of the Philippines nominees for appointment as members of the various Boards from among those nominated by the bona fide professional organizations accredited by the Commission to fill existing or probable vacancies;” WHEREAS, only professionals possessing demonstrated outstanding qualifications should be nominated and appointed as should be nominated and appointed as members of the various professional regulatory Boards; WHEREAS, the screening and selection of nominees should be based strictly on merit, integrity and fitness; WHEREAS, uniform procedures and criteria for the selection and nomination of persons to fill existing vacancies in the various professional regulatory Boards should be instituted; NOW, THEREFORE, I, CORAZON C. AQUINO, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do hereby order and direct the following: ARTICLE I DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATIONS Section 1. Committee on Nominations. – There shall be a permanent standing committee called the Committee on Nominations in every professional organization accredited by the Professional Regulation Commission in accordance with the provisions of its Rules and Regulations Governing the Regulation and Practice of Professionals, as amended. The Committee shall be composed of the five (5) immediate past national presidents of the organization. However, should any of the five past national president be not available, the past president immediately following the last five shall serve as Member. The most recent president shall serve as Chairman of the Committee. If an organization does not have the necessary number of past president as herein required, incumbent members of the Board of Directors selected by the Board members themselves shall serve in the Committee. In this relation, the Professional Regulation Commission shall submit to the Office of the President at the end of every quarter a complete updated list of all the professional organizations it has accredited in accordance with rules and regulations. Section 2. Term of Office. – The Chairman of the Committee shall serve until replaced by the next incoming past president. The Members shall serve until replaced on a first-in, first-out basis through the assumption to membership of the most recent past president. Section 3. Duties and Responsibilities. – The Committee on Nominations shall have the following duties and responsibilities: A. To actively search, screen and select qualified nominees for appointment to vacant positions in its professional regulatory Board; B. To submit to the National Board of Directors for approval the names of the five (5) qualified nominees, ranked in the order of preference, for very vacancy in its professional regulatory Board; Provided, however, that if there are two or more vacancies, a single list with appropriate rankings shall be submitted to the said Board; and C. To comply with all their requirements of the Professional Regulations Commission regarding the selection and nomination of persons for appointment to its professional regulatory Board. Section 4. Search and Screening Process. – The Committee shall actively search for persons with demonstrated outstanding qualifications for membership in the Board, keeping in mind that appointment thereto is a privilege and not a right. Nomination shall be based strictly on merit, integrity and fitness. Section 5. Criteria for Selection of Nominees. – In addition to the qualifications required by the respective laws governing each profession, the nominees for appointment to the professional regulatory Board should meet the following criteria: A. Proven leadership qualities as evidenced by honors, awards and citations given by reputable organizations, and participation and involvement in the activities of the professional organization and social and civic associations; B. Professional competence and experience as evidenced by relevant past in present positions held, years of professional practice, professional honors and awards, and academic honors and degrees. C. Impeccable integrity and a strong commitment to promote and maintain the highest professional standards as evidenced by his personal and professional conduct, personal interviews and the testimony of colleagues, clients and socio-civic leaders; D. Up-to-date knowledge of current theories, principles and practices in the profession as evidenced by teaching and research activities, scholarly articles in publications, participation in continuing professional education and development programs, and advanced academic degrees; and E. Must have the time, capacity and capability to perform the duties and to fulfill the obligations of a regulatory Board Member, which include, among others, the preparation and rating of examination papers, the hearing of administrative cases, and the inspection of schools, colleges and universities, hospitals, industrial plants and others. Section 6. Disqualification. – Two following shall be disqualified from being nominated: A. Those who have already completed at least two (2) terms in the professional regulatory Board so that other member who may be equally, if not more, qualified shall have the opportunity to serve in their professional regulatory Board; B. Those who are incumbent national officers (President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer and Press Relations Officer or their equivalent positions) of the organization; and C. Those who directly or indirectly solicit and use influence in seeking their nominations, for this evinces unprofessional conduct. The solicitation and use of influence referred to herein shall be considered prima facie evidence that the person concerned lacks the necessary qualifications for appointment to the regulatory Board of his profession. Section 7. Accomplishment of Personal and Data Sheet and Submission of Clearances. - Each nominee shall accomplish the Personal Data Sheet or Nomination Form prescribed by the Professional Regulation Commission The Personal Data Sheet or Nomination Form shall subscribed under oath and accompanied by current clearances from the National Bureau of Investigation and the Office of the Ombudsman. Section 8. Submission of List of Nominees. – On the basis of the report of the Committee on Nominations, the National President of the duly accredited professional organization shall submit to the Professional Regulation Commission the resolution of the National Board of Directors recommending not more than five (5) nominees, ranked in the order of preference, for appointment to each vacancy in the professional regulatory Board; Provided, however, that if two or more vacancies exist, a single list with appropriate rankings shall be submitted. The list shall be submitted not later than three (3) months before the vacancy occurs. The nominations submitted to the Commission shall be valid for the present vacancy to be filled. Subsequent vacancies that may occur will require another list of nominees, which may or may not include those who have not been previously considered. Section 9. Failure or Refusal of the Accredited Professional Organization to Submit Nominees. – The Commission shall notify the duly accredited professional organization of probable or existing vacancies in its professional regulatory Board. In the event that the organization fails or refuses to submit nominees for vacant position within the period prescribed herein, the Commission may either recommend (a) the reappointment of the incumbent or permit him to stay in a hold-over capacity if the law creating the professional regulatory Board so authorizes or (b) the appointment of another person who possesses the necessary qualifications based on the criteria herein provided. The Commission may likewise exercise the same prerogative should there be a clear showing that the Committee on Nominations of the accredited professional organization has disregarded the criteria herein mentioned in the selection of the nominees. ARTICLE II DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF THE PROFESSIONAL REGULATION COMMISSION Section 1. Publication of names of nominees. – The Commission shall, upon receipt of the resolution from the accredited professional organization, immediately publish the same in a newspaper or general circulation for the purpose of inviting anyone who may have derogatory information against any of the nominees which may render him unfit for the position to inform the said Commission within a period of ten (10) days from such publication. A copy of the list of the nominees shall also presented on the bulletin board of the Commission. Section 2. Resolution for Recommendation of Nominees. – The Commission shall adopt a resolution recommending to the President of the Philippines three (3) nominees, ranked in the order of preference, for appointment to each vacancy in the various professional regulatory Boards, said nominees having selected from among the five (5) names recommended by the duly accredited professional organization. Section 3. Submission by the Commission of the Resolution to the Office of the President. – The Resolution shall be submitted by the Chairman of the Commission to the Office of the President not later than two (2) months before the vacancy occurs, with the request that the appointment be issued not later than thirty (30) days before the scheduled licensure examinations. Section 4. Reappointment of the Chairman or Member of the Professional Regulatory Board. – Any Chairman or Member of the professional regulatory Board whose term would expire but who has served less than half of his full term of office as prescribed by law may be recommended for appointment if he has shown exemplary record or performance and such reappointment is authorized by the law creating the professional regulatory Board. Section 5. Appointment of the Chairman of the Professional Regulatory Board. In the event that a vacancy occurs in the position of the Chairman of the professional regulatory Board, the Commission shall, after consultations with outgoing Chairman, the other members of the Board and the professional organization concerned, select a nominee from among the incumbent members of the professional regulatory Board for recommendation to appointment as Chairman if such appointment is authorized by the law creating the said professional regulatory Board. This shall not preclude the nomination of others who are not incumbent Board members but who possess outstanding qualities based on the criteria herein mentioned to merit appointment. A separate resolution recommending nominees for appointment to the position of Board Chairman shall be adopted by the Commission for submission to the Office of the President. This Executive Order shall take effect immediately. DONE in the City of Manila, this 9th day of December in the year of Our Lord, nineteen hundred and ninety-one. CORAZON C. AQUINO President of the Philippines By the President: FRANKLIN M. DRILON Executive Secretary The Lawphil Project - Arellano Law Foundation