Santiago v. Court Of Appeals

PARAS, J.:

Before Us is a Petition for certiorari to review the decision1 of the respondent Court of Appeals promulgated June 6, 1978 in CA-G.R. No. 07885, affirming the decision2 of the respondent Court of Agrarian Relations dated February 22, 1978 in CAR Case No. 1389 of the Fourth Regional District, Branch III-A, Gapan, Nueva Ecija, which was an action for the increase of agricultural leasehold rentals, the dispositive portion of which reads as follows: FOR ALL THE FOREGOING CONSIDERATIONS, judgment is hereby rendered in favor of plaintiff-spouses3 Ponciano PADERES and DIONESIA Garcia and against defendant4 Gregorio Santiago, in the tenor and disposition hereinbelow provided: 1. Authorizing herein plaintiffs to increase the leasehold rentals over the landholding in question with an approximate area of 2.5. hectares, situated at Lumanas, Tabuating, San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija, for the regular crop from 17 cavans and 29 kilos to 42 cavans of clean dried palay at 46 kilos a cavan effective the current agricultural year; 2.

Ordering the parties to change their tenancy system from share to leasehold tenancy on the dayatan crop at a fixed rental of 42 cavans of clean dried palay at 50 kilos per cavan effective the current agricultural year; 3. Ordering the defendant to notify plaintiffs three (3) days before reaping and threshing; and 4. Dismissing plaintiff's claim for moral damages and attorney's fees for insufficiency of evidence.

SO ORDERED. (pp. 34-35, Rollo) The undisputed facts are summarized by the appellate court as follows: Plaintiff spouses Ponciano Paderes and Dionesia Garcia (PADERESES, for short), are the owners of a piece of agricultural land planted to rice located at Lumanas, Tabuating, San Leonardo, Nueva Ecija, containing an area of 2.5. hectares, more or less (hereinafter to be referred to simply as the "LANDHOLDING").

Before 1974, the LANDHOLDING received water for irrigation from the Bongabon Irrigation System and could be planted to two cropping seasons a year known as the regular and the dayatan crops. The tenant on the LANDHOLDING is defendant Gregorio Santiago. In a previous CAR Case initiated by SANTIAGO, the rentals for the LANDHOLDING were fixed by the trial court at 17 cavans and 29 kilos at 46 kilos per cavan for the regular crop, and because of the irregularity of irrigation water supply from the Bongabon Irrigation System, the rental for the dayatan crop was temporarily fixed at 25% of the net harvest after deducting the seeds and costs of reaping and threshing.

The decision was affirmed by the Court of Appeals on September 24, 1975. When the Pantabangan Dam went into operation sometime in 1974, it complemented the supply of water from the Bongabon Irrigation System so that the harvests of crops from ricelands thus serviced, including the LANDHOLDING. increased.

On January 27, 1977, the PADERESES filed the present action for an increase in rentals alleging that, with the operation of the Pantabangan Dam, the sufficient and continuous supply of irrigation water from the Bongabon Irrigation System resulted not only in an increased yield but also insured the harvest of dayatan crop in the LANDHOLDING. In his Answer, SANTIAGO alleged that the PADERESES had no justification for the increase in rentals and claimed that the action was merely to harass him for which he claimed damages. (pp. 35-36, Rollo) After the issues were joined the trial court rendered a decision in favor of the plaintiffs (herein private respondents) thus prompting defendant (herein petitioner) to appeal to respondent appellate court on questions of law and of fact.

The appellate court, in affirming the decision of the trial court, found that the findings of fact in the decision of the lower court are supported by the evidence and the conclusions stated therein are not against the law and jurisprudence. Hence the present petition with three issues to be resolved: I THE RENTALS OF THE LANDHOLDING IN QUESTION HAD BEEN PREVIOUSLY FIXED AT 17 CAVANS AND 29 KILOS IN CAR CASE NO. 563 ON FEBRUARY 28, 1974, CAN THE SAME COURT INCREASE THE RENTALS TO 42 CAVANS IN CAR CASE NO 1389 ON THE SAME LANDHOLDING BASED ONLY ON MISINTERPRETATION OF LAW AND APPLICABLE JURISPRUDENCE ON AGRARIAN LAWS?

II WHEN THE RENTALS OF THE LANDHOLDING HAS (SIC) BEEN PREVIOUSLY FIXED, IS IT JUSTIFIED TO INCREASE THE RENTALS BASED ON IMPROVEMENT INTRODUCED WITHOUT INQUIRING INTO THE ACTUAL INCREASE OF HARVEST'? III WHEN AN AGRARIAN CASE IS APPEALED TO THE COURT OF APPEALS, IS IT PROPER FOR THE APPELLATE COURT TO RENDER A DECISION EVEN WITHOUT NOTICE TO THE PARTIES INVOLVED TO REQUIRE THEM TO FILE THEIR RESPECTIVE MEMORANDA? (Page 2, Brief of Petitioner) Simply stated, petitioner alleges that the appellate court committed error and abuse of discretion in affirming the trial court's decision increasing the rentals on the landholding since said affirmance was based only on misappreciation/misrepresentation of the applicable agrarian law and jurisprudence.

Petitioner also alleges denial of due process since the respondent Court of Appeals rendered its decision without giving due notice to the parties in order to require them to file their respective memoranda. The applicable law in this case is the last paragraph of Sec. 34 of R.A. 3844 as amended by R.A. 6389, to wit: If capital improvements are introduced on the farm not by the lessee to increase its productivity, the rental shall be increased proportionately to the consequent increase in production due to said improvements.ℒαwρhi৷ In case of disagreement, the Court shall determine the reasonable increase in rental. The findings of fact both of the agrarian court and the appellate court established that the operation of the Pantabangan Dam in 1974, supplementing irrigation water service from the Bongabon Irrigation System, resulted in increased production of ricelands, including the LANDHOLDING which certainly was introduced not by the lessee, which warrants an increase in rental as provided for by R.A. 3844.

From the record, We gather the following: that prior to 1974, this landholding was already an irrigated riceland with the water supplied by the Pampanga-Bongabon River Irrigation System. When defendant started his farm work in the agricultural year (1969-1970), this landholding was only planted to one cropping season known as the regular crop because the water supply from the said irrigation system was inadequate and not continuous. On the basis of the gross harvests for the three (3) agricultural years, namely: 1969 - 1970 - 100 cavans 1970 - 1971 - 72 cavans 1971 - 1972 - 84 cavans