Payment of One-half of the Gross Monthly Salary and Other Monetary Compensation of Hadji Faisal Umpar to His Wife, Hadja Fatima I. Umpar

January 13, 1998 BIR RULING [DA-005-98] MEMORANDUM DATE : January 5, 1998 TO : The Commissioner FROM : DCIR Sixto S. Esquivias IV : Legal & Enforcement Group SUBJECT : Payment of One-half of the Gross Monthly Salary and Other Monetary Compensation of Hadji Faisal Umpar to His Wife, Hadja Fatima I. Umpar This refers to the letter of Ms. Myrna E. Sobremonte, Chief of the Accounting Division, this Bureau, dated November 29, 1997, requesting for legal opinion regarding the propriety of the request of Hadja Fatima I. Umpar, allegedly one of the legitimate wives of Hadji Faisal Umpar, a BIR employee assigned in Revenue Region No. 18, Cotabato City, for the payment to her of one-half () of the gross monthly salary and all other monetary compensation to be derived by Hadji Umpar from this Bureau. casia It appears that in an Indorsement signed by you on May 24, 1993, you have advised Hadji Faisal B. Umpar to execute a Special Power of Attorney authorizing Hadja Fatima I. Umpar to draw of Hadji Umpar's net monthly salary (exclusive of all deductions), so that thereof shall be paid to Hadji Umpar in Cotabato City, and the other half will be paid to Hadja Umpar in the BIR National Office; that in compliance thereto, Hadji Umpar executed a Special Power of Attorney granting full power and authority to Hadja Umpar to collect and receive of his net monthly salary effective September, 1993; that, however, on November 11, 1994, said Hadji Faisal Umpar executed another Special Power of Attorney, still in favor of his said wife, this time changing the previously approved proportion of the authorized amount that can be drawn and collected by Hadja Fatima I. Umpar from the then of Hadji Umpar's net monthly salary of of his gross monthly salary and all other monetary compensation due to him effective November, 1994 ; and that based on the said Special Power of Attorney, Revenue Region No. 18 of Cotabato City had been paying Hadji Umpar only of his gross monthly salary and all other monetary compensation effective November 1994 and the other half of the said monthly salary had been paid to Hadja Umpar; that allegedly, these drawings being made by Hadja Umpar from the salary of Hadji Umpar form part of the support of the latter to the former and their children who are studying here in Metro Manila. In reply, please be informed that Title IV of P.D. No. 1083, otherwise known as the " Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines " provides as follows: " TITLE IV . SUPPORT (NAFAQA) "ARTICLE 65. Support defined . Support (nafaqa) includes everything that is indispensable for sustenance, dwelling, clothing and medical attendance according to the social standing of the person obliged to give it, and the education of the person entitled to the support until he completes his education, training or vocation even beyond the age of majority . "ARTICLE 66. Amount . The amount of support shall be in proportion to the resources of the giver and to the needs of the recipient. "xxx xxx xxx "ARTICLE 68. Support between ascendants and descendants . The ascendants and descendants shall be obliged to support each other in the order in which they are called to succeed by intestacy the person who has a right to claim support. "ARTICLE 69. Payment . (1) The obligation to support shall be demandable from the time the recipient needs it for maintenance, but it shall not be paid except from the date it is extra-judicially demanded. (2) Payment shall be made daily, weekly or monthly in advance, and when the recipient dies, his heirs shall not be obliged to return what they had received in advance. (3) If the recipient is the wife, the rule established in the foregoing paragraph shall apply even though the marriage is dissolved. "ARTICLE 70. Extinguishment of support . The obligation to support shall cease: "(1) Upon the death of the recipient; "(2) When the resources of the obligor have been so reduced that he cannot give the support without neglecting his own need and those of his family, except that in the case of the spouses, the husband, though needy, is obliged to support the wife; or "(3) When the recipient commits any act which would give rise to disqualification to inherit or denial of support under Muslim law." (Emphasis supplied.) Moreover, although Filipino Muslim communities are governed by this special law known as the " Code of Muslim Personal Laws of the Philippines ", the provisions of the New Civil Code of the Philippines, the Rules of Court and other existing laws, insofar as they are not inconsistent with the provisions of the former Code, shall be applied suppletorily. In this connection, Article 1868 of the New Civil Code provides as follows: "ARTICLE 1868. By the contract of agency, a person binds himself to render some service or to do something in representation or on behalf of another, with the consent or authority of the latter." When Hadji Faisal Umpar executed Special Powers of Attorney on two (2) different occasions authorizing for that purpose Hadja Fatima I. Umpar to draw from his monthly salary his support to the latter and their children since May, 1993, then it necessarily follows that the acts of Hadja Fatima I. Umpar of drawing from Hadji Faisal Umpar's monthly salary from the Bureau in accordance with the provisions of two separate Special Powers of Attorney executed by the former are but just legally valid and binding. LLphil This opinion shall serve as the authority of the Accounting Division, this Bureau, to pay to Hadja Fatima I. Umpar of the gross monthly salary and all other monetary compensation due to Hadji Faisal Umpar in accordance with the provisions of a Special Power of Attorney executed on November 11, 1994 by the latter unless sooner revoked by him or upon the occurrence of the foregoing grounds as aforestated under Art. 70 of the " Code of Muslims Personal Laws of the Philippines ." (SGD.) SIXTO S. ESQUIVIAS IV Deputy Commissioner Legal & Enforcement Group APPROVED: (SGD.) LIWAYWAY VINZONS-CHATO Commissioner of Internal Revenue