NEGROS ICE HOUSE CORPORATION, PETITIONER, VS. INOCENCIO CHUA AND THE PUBLIC SERVICE COMMISSION, RESPONDENTS.

Petitioner Negros Ice House Corporation seeks a review of the order of
the Public Service Commission granting private respondent Inocencio
Chua a provisional permit to operate an ice cube factory in Bacolod City.  The
order granting the provisional permit was issued by the Commission on 25
August 1969 in its
Case No. 69-2683.

The petition charges
abuse of discretion in that the contested permit was issued (a) without a
notice and hearing despite the fact that in form and substance it is a certificate of public convenience and necessity; (b) in that applicant Inocencio Chua was of unproven citizenship, and failed to
establish his financial ability to operate; (c) that there was no proof of
urgent need for the service applied for; and (d) that the issued order would
deprive the prior established operators of their property without due process
of law.  We issued a preliminary injunction upon a bond of P5,000.00
that was duly posted.

The answer traversed the charges and pleaded in defense that respondent
Chua is a Filipino citizen, and that the disputed order was issued only after
Chua had completed presentation of his evidence before the Public Service
Commission.  Subsequently, respondent
Chua asked for the dismissal of the petition on the ground of its belated
presentation in this Court, invoking the provisions of Section 36 of the Public
Service Act (Commonwealth Act No. 146) that prescribes the following:

“SEC. 36.  Any order, ruling, or decision of the
Commission may be reviewed on the application of any person or public service
affected thereby, by certiorari in appropriate cases, or by petition, to
be known as Petition for Review, which shall be filed within thirty days from
the notification of such order, ruling, or decision or, in case a petition for
the reconsideration of such order, ruling, or decision is filed in accordance
with the preceding section and the same is denied, it shall be filed within
fifteen days after notice of the order denying reconsideration.  Said petition shall be placed on file in the
Office of the Clerk of the Supreme Court who shall furnish copies thereof to
the Secretary of the Commission and other parties interested.”

Petitioner corporation failed to register its opposition to the motion
to dismiss, although it was granted several extensions of time to do so, at
it’s behest.

Examination of the record discloses that petitioner
corporation received notice of the controverted order
of the Public Service Commission on 16 September 1969 (Petition, Ch. IV,
paragraph 6, page 5) and that the present petition for review was only docketed
in this Court on 18 October 1969, i.e., 32 days after receipt of notice of the
order under attack.  Clearly, the petition
for review was filed late and
did not confer jurisdiction upon this Court except to dismiss it, since the
Commission’s order had become unreviewable on 16
October 1969, subject of course to the final decision on the merits.

FOR THE FOREGOING REASON, the petition is hereby
dismissed, and the preliminary injunction, heretofore issued, is
dissolved.  Costs
against petitioner Negros Ice House Corporation.

Dizon, Makalintal,
Zaldivar, Ruiz Castro, Fernando, Teehankee,
Barredo, and Makasiar, JJ., concur.

Concepcion, C.J., and Villamor, J., on official leave.