[2] On July 16, 2013, the controversy finally ended after the Supreme Court of the Philippines voted 12-1-2 that voided the four proclamations created by former President Gloria Arroyo that made these people National Artists.

[4] Controversy arose from the revelation that musician Ramon Santos had been dropped from the list of nominees short-listed in May that year by the selection committee, and four other individuals had been nominated to the title via "President’s prerogative":[1][2] Members of the Philippine art community, including a number of living National Artists of the Philippines, protested that the proclamation politicized the title of National artist, and made it "a way for President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to accommodate her allies.

Philippine entertainment news website PEP says that a CCP official, who had asked not to be named, revealed that Santos actually won the most votes during the selection process.

[August 4, 2009]"[10] Another aspect of the controversy regards the existence and of the Palace Honors committee which allegedly prepared the final list of nominees, which was eventually enacted by Arroyo.

NCCA sub-commission on the arts head Ricardo de Ungria, one of the panelists involved in the selection process, insisted before a congressional committee meeting on the matter that the arts community “were never apprised of the existence of this animal since the start of the selection process this year or eight years ago.”[12] According to Malacañang and to Cecile Guidote-Alvarez, however, the selection process had always involved the participation of three committees - those of the CCP, the NCCA and the Malacañang honors committee, whose head was Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita.

Sana, maghintay na lang sila ng tamang panahon sa gusto nilang manalo.

"I work and struggle with them.” He said it was time for a National Artist “who the masses can identify with—someone who walks beside them, someone who can inspire them.” Noting that some Filipinos did not even know the National Artists he said “Hopefully, since I am still active in TV and in the movies, this will encourage our countrymen to learn more about our National Artists.”[1] Others who have come to his defense include Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO) director and former Movie and Television Review and Classification Board (MTRCB) chief Manoling Morato, Volunteers Against Crime and Corruption (VACC) head Dante Jimenez, boxer Manny Pacquiao, Senators Ramon Revilla Jr. and Jinggoy Estrada, Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino chair Joe Lad Santos, and Polytechnic University of the Philippines president Dante Guevarra.

They also revealed that a fourth nominee, Ramon Santos (shortlisted for music), had not been conferred the order as recommended by committee – also supposedly part of the president's prerogative.

Over the next few days, previously conferred members of the Order of National Artists, notably Eddie Romero, F. Sionil Jose, Bienvenido Lumbera, Virgilio Almario, and BenCab protested.

Hontiveros noted:[17] "Choosing national artists should fundamentally be about contribution in the arts and culture, not patronage or closeness to Malacañang.

"Also on August 15, the ABS CBN News Channel (ANC) hosted an episode of Cheche Lazaro's Media in Focus, in which the controversial awardees in the person of Caparas and Alavarez were supposed to face off with protesting artists in the person of National Artist Eddie Romero, CCP Chair Emily Abrera, Palanca Award Hall of Fame Awardee Butch Dalisay, and film critic Alexis Tioseco.

"[20] After the mock ceremony, participants continued the protest with a motorcade which ended at the offices of the NCCA, where Alvarez serves as head.

On August 19, 2009, a group of National Artists and supporters, led by National Artists for Literature Bienvenido Lumbera and Virgilio Almario, filed a 38-page petition at the Supreme Court "for prohibition, certiorari and injunction with prayer for restraining order to prevent the Palace from conferring the title to respondents," to stop "the release of the monetary benefits, entitlements and emoluments… to private respondents arising from such conferment," and the "holding of the acknowledgement ceremonies for their recognition.

On August 25, 2009, the Supreme Court issued a status quo order, stopping Malacañang from conferring the honor pending deliberation of the petition to disqualify Alvarez, Caparas, Mañosa, and Moreno.

"[23] The incident involving Caparas has also been the subject of vandalism in Wikipedia, where anonymous editors and newly registered accounts maliciously edited the article, substituting the titles with nonsensical ones containing Tagalog pejoratives.

On August 31, 2009, Dalisay claimed in his column in The Philippine Star that the NCCA web page regarding the selection process for national artists had been changed:[25]When I looked up the National Artists page on the NCCA website, the rules had suddenly changed — now there was a mention of Executive Order 236 empowering an Honors Committee to make up its own list of NA nominees to the President.

[11][12] On the same day, the CCP submitted to the Supreme Court its 31-page comment regarding the petition to disqualify the National Artists added by Malacañang to the list of nominees.

[26] On July 16, 2013, the Supreme Court in Almario v. Executive Secretary voided former President Arroyo's proclamations recognizing Alvarez, Caparas, Mañosa and Moreno as National Artists.

The original nominees were Lazaro Francisco (literature), Dr. Ramon Santos (music), Manuel Conde (film and broadcast) and Federico Aguilar Alcuaz (visual arts, painting, sculpture and mixed media).

It observed a "manifest disregard" of the rules, guidelines and processes of the NCCA and the CCP when Arroyo considered names that were not screened and recommended by the boards of the two entities.

[27] It decreed: While the Court invalidates today the proclamation of respondents Guidote-Alvarez, Caparas, Mañosa and Moreno as National Artists, such action should not be taken as a pronouncement on whether they are worthy to be conferred that honor.

However, nothing in this Decision should be read as a disqualification on the part of respondents Guidote-Alvarez, Caparas, Mañosa and Moreno to be considered for the honor of National Artist in the future, subject to compliance with the laws, rules and regulations governing said award.On June 20, 2014, President Benigno Aquino III included Ramon Santos as one of the six National Artists named in 2014.