G.R. No. L-45414




Republic of the Philippines SUPREME COURT Manila SECOND DIVISION G.R. No. L-45414 August 31, 1977 THE MAYOR OF THE CITY OF DUMAGUETE, petitioner, vs. HON. ALEJANDRO R. BONCAROS, Presiding Judge of the Court of First Instance of Negros Oriental, and S.L. TEVES, INCORPORATED, respondents. CONCEPCION, JR., J.: This is a petition to review the decision of the Court of First Instance of Negros Oriental, Branch V, in Civil Case No. 6321, dated September 29, 1976. The record discloses that on September 22, 1975, the private respondent S.L. Teves, Inc., filed with the Court of First Instance of Negros Oriental, Branch V, presided by respondent Judge Alejandro R. Boncaros, a petition for mandamus ¹ to compel the petitioner Mayor of Dumaguete City to issue the former a Mayor's Permit to operate the "Park" and "Town" theaters. In due time, the petitioner tiled his answer ² and, after the usual admissions and denials, interposed several affirmative defenses. After due hearing, the respondent Judge rendered a decision,³ dated September 29, 1976, the dispositive portion of which reads: WHEREFORE, the Honorable City Mayor of Dumaguete City is hereby ordered to issue a permit to the petitioner to operate the Park and Town theaters covering the period July 31 to December 31, 1975 after payment of the required permit fee and amusement tax. SO ORDERED. Whereupon, the petitioner instituted before this Court the present petition, claiming others that the respondent Judge erred in declaring that the City Mayor of Dumaguete City does not have the power to exercise discretion in the issuance of a permit under Section 6 of Ordinance No. 79 series of 1974 Local Tax Code of the City of Dumaguete ⁴ after said Section shall have been complied with. ⁵ Thereafter, the private respondent S.L. Teves, Inc. filed its comment ⁶ on the petition on March 30, 1977, and the petitioner, his reply ⁷ thereto on June 7, 1977. In its comment the private respondent S.L. Teves, Inc., claims that the present case is now moot and academic because the petitioner Mayor of Dumaguete City had already issued the permit prayed for in the petition for mandamus in Civil Case No. 6321 as shown by the certified true copy of the Mayor's Permit, and the certified true copy of the payment of the required fees, both attached to the private respondent's comment. ⁸ This is admitted by the petitioner in his reply. Since the petitioner Mayor of Dumaguete City already issued the permit for the petitioner to operate the Park and Town theaters, this case has indeed become moot and academic. ACCORDINGLY, the instant petition should be, as it is hereby, dismissed. SO ORDERED. Fernando (Chairman), Barredo, Antonio, Aquino and Santos, JJ., concur. Footnotes 1 Annex "A", p. 9, Rollo. 2 Annex "B", p. 18, Rollo. 3 Annex "F", p. 30, Rollo. 4 The said Section reads as follows: "It shall be unlawful for any person or entity to conduct or engage in any businesses, trade or occupation enumerated herein for which a permit is required for the proper supervision and enforcement of existing laws and ordinances governing the sanitation, security and welfare of the public and health of the employee 3 engaged in the business specified herein without first having obtained a permit therefor from the City Mayor and the necessary fees paid to the City Treasurer." 5 P. 4, Rollo. 6 p. 106, Rollo. 7 p. 115, Rollo. 8 pp. 110, 111, Rollo. The Lawphil Project - Arellano Law Foundation