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Cayetano the only senator-elect to comply with all SOCE filing requirements


(Updated 8:53 p.m. 19 June 2013) Only one among the 12 senators-elect who were elected or re-elected to the Senate during the recent May polls complied fully with the Commission on Elections' requirements in the filing of expenditures reports, the Comelec said Tuesday.

According to an urgent memorandum from the office of Comelec commissioner Christian Robert Lim, Alan Peter Cayetano is the lone senatorial victor who incurred no violation in filing his statement of contributions and expenditures (SOCE).

Lim heads the poll body's Campaign Finance Unit.

Still, the poll body withheld Cayetano's certificate of compliance until his party, the Nacionalista Party, submits its lacking documents in its SOCE. Cayetano ran under the Liberal Party coalition.

Senators-elect who failed to submit complete information on their contributors are: Sonny Angara, JV Ejercito, Francis "Chiz" Escudero, Gringo Honasan, Loren Legarda, Koko Pimentel, Grace Poe, Antonio Trillanes IV, and Cynthia Villar.

Those who failed to submit complete information on expenses are: Nancy Binay, Honasan, Legarda, and Poe.

Those who did not personally sign their SOCEs as required by the Comelec are: Bam Aquino, Pimentel, Poe, and Villar. Their expenditure reports are deemed "not filed" until they comply with the requirement, the memorandum said.

The senators-elect may be fined P1,000 per day until they comply with the correct requirements, according to the document.

Only Aquino was able to supply the lacking documents—four days after the deadline on June 13, with a penalty of P4,000.

The various violations of the senators-elect are: missing receipts of donors, no tax identification numbers of contributors, no personal signatures of candidates, missing receipts of expenses, among others.

Still, poll chief Sixto Brillantes Jr. said the Comelec has yet to decide if it will enforce the penalties strictly.

"We'll have to come up with a resolution... We cannot just approve [the memorandum] without going through it. Consensus muna tayo. Pag-aralan muna natin ulit," he told GMA News Online in a phone interview.

According to Comelec Resolution No. 9476, "an incomplete statement... shall be considered as not filed and shall subject the candidate or party treasurer to the penalties prescribed by law."

Losing bets

Meanwhile, among the senatorial bets who lost in the senatorial race, only Samson Alcantara of the Social Justice Society, Jun Magsaysay and Risa Hontiveros of the Liberal Party coalition, and independent Ricardo Penson had no deficiencies in their expenditure reports.
 
Teddy Casiño of the Makabayan Coalition fully complied but his party has yet to submit its SOCE. The law department may give him the compliance certificate if Casiño requests it, the memorandum said.
 
Those who failed to submit complete information on donors are: Greco Belgica, Tingting Cojuangco, Richard Gordon, Ed Hagedorn, Ernie Maceda, Mitos Magsaysay, Ramon Montaño, and Migz Zubiri.
 
The candidates who failed to attach complete documents on expenses are: Jack Enrile, Gordon, Hagedorn, Maceda, Madrigal, Mitos Magsaysay, Montaño and Christian Señeres.
 
Bets who failed to follow the prescribed format are Baldomero Falcone of the Democratic Party of the Philippines and Eddie Villanueva of Bangon Pilipinas. Villanueva also failed to attach supporting receipts.
 
The only one who failed to submit his SOCEs as of press time is Marwil Llasos of Ang Kapatiran.

Rizalito David submitted his expense reports, but the Comelec has yet to assess it for deficiency.
 
Only Enrile among the list failed to sign his expenditure report.
 
JC Delos Reyes of Ang Kapatiran said in his SOCE that his party spent for his expenses but the party has yet to file its expenditure report.

Political parties

Meanwhile, the political parties that failed to comply with the Comelec's requirements are:

Liberal Party - Incomplete information on contributors, no copy of receipts of contributors, expenses not itemized

United Nationalist Alliance - No receipts of contributors and receipts or invoices of expenses

Ang Kapatiran - No SOCE and attachments

Bangon Pilipinas - No copy of receipts of contributors

Democratic Party of the Philippines - No SOCE and attachments

Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino - No SOCE and attachments

Makabayan Coalition - No SOCE and attachments

Nacionalista Party - No receipts of contributors

National People's Coalition - No receipts of contributors

The following political parties, which claimed to have not spent any expenses and contributions in their SOCE, will be issued a certificate of compliance: Partido Demokratiko Pilipino-Lakas ng Bayan and Social Justice Society.

Akbayan Citizens' Action Party will also be issued a certificate for submitting the complete SOCE which stated that the party has not received any contributions.

Fine and penalty
 
According to Republic Act 7166, every candidate and treasurer of a political party shall be required to file an itemized statement of all contributions and expenditures within 30 days after Election Day. The deadline was on June 13, 5 p.m.
 
Failure to submit SOCEs is penalized with an administrative fine ranging from P2,000 to P30,000 for the first offense, and from P2,000 to P60,000 for second offense, depending on the position, according to Comelec Resolution No. 9476.
 
While it is not a criminal act, failure to file SOCEs can lead to a penalty of disqualification from holding public office, the law said.
 
Brillantes said those who failed to submit SOCEs in two elections will be disqualified from running for public office. Meanwhile, those who failed to submit SOCEs before June 30 will not be able to assume office. — BM/ELR, GMA News
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