The President said yesterday in a press briefing that it was not necessary for him to declare a state of emergency in Zamboanga.

      A so-called declaration of a state of emergency by the President does not confer any additional or extraordinary powers on the President. In fact, if by  a mere declaration from the President, it confers nothing.

      The commander—in-chief powers of the President are:

 1)The “calling-out” power or the power to call out the armed forces to prevent or suppress lawless violence, etc. (the power to deploy the armed forces to any part of the country to quell rebellion, invasion, lawless violence, etc.)

2) the power to suspend the privilege of the writ of habeas corpus (when the President suspends the privilege of the writ, he could detain or order the detention of  a person — but the Constitution requires only for rebellion or related offenses and that such detainee be charged within three days);

 3)martial law.

      The so-called emergency powers (as distinguished from the commander-in-chief powers) refer to when the President asks Congress to authorize him by law to exercise extraordinary powers,  such as the take-over of public utilities – this can only be done by legislative enactment  from Congress.