Comelec to resolve petitions vs. COC including Marcos' before official release of candidates

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday said it is eyeing to resolve all petitions for cancellation of certificates of candidacy (COC) before the scheduled release of official list of candidates for Eleksyon 2022.

This includes the petition for cancellation of COC of presidential aspirant former senator Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr.

"Dapat naman [ma-resolve bago ang pag-release ng official list ng candidates]," Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said in an interview on GMA News' Unang Balita.

(It should be resolved before the official list of candidates is released.)

"Kung hindi naman siya magtatagal ng masyado, kung walang masyadong hearing o mga clarificatory hearings na hihingin, mukha namang matatapos natin on time dahil tatlong araw lang naman ang ibibigay natin sa kanila sa pag-submit ng kanilang respective memoranda, so 'yung mga pleading nila," he added.

(If proceedings will not take long, if there are not much hearings or clarificatory hearings, it looks like we will resolve the petition on time. We will give the parties only three days to submit their respective memoranda, their pleadings.)

Last week, petitioners representing human rights organizations asked the Comelec to cancel or deny due course to the COC of Marcos Jr. The groups said Marcos was convicted on July 27, 1995 for failure to file income tax returns several times from 1982 to 1985. They said this made the son and namesake of the late dictator ineligible to run for office because he was a "convicted criminal."

Marcos Jr. on Wednesday underscored that he will not back down and withdraw from the presidential race despite the petition to cancel his COC, saying the allegation was a political ploy.

Jimenez said the petition to cancel Marcos Jr.'s COC — not for disqualification — has already been raffled off to a division of the Comelec. That division will determine if there was material misrepresentation.

"Petition for cancellation ang pinag-uusapan natin dito. Hindi po siya disqualification case. Iba po 'yon. Ang petition for cancellation, sinasabi lamang na may mali doon sa kanyang COC kaya dapat hindi tanggapin," the Comelec spokesperson said.

(The petition for cancellation [of COC] is what was filed [regarding Marcos Jr.]. It is not a disqualification case. That is different. In a petition for cancellation, it says there was something wrong with the COC that is why it should not be accepted.)

"Kailangan 'yon [material misrepresentation] 'yung titingnan kung talaga nga bang mali 'yung pagkakasabi niya ng no o yes or whatever. Kung mali 'yung sagot, ide-determine natin," he said.

([The division] will determine if material misrepresentation was committed, in his answer of no or yes or whatever. If the answer was not truthful, we will be able to determine that.)

"Naghihintay lang tayo para ma-issue ang summons. Napakarami kasi ng kaso sa docket ng division na 'yon," Jimenez said.

(We are just waiting so the summons will be issued. That division is handling a lot of cases.)

In a radio interview on Wednesday, Jimenez said the summons will hopefully be issued within the week.

“Hopefully, within the week makapaglabas tayo ng summons. Summons, ito ‘yung abiso para sa respondents na sumagot, mag-file ng answer,” he said.

(We hope within the week we can release the summons, which is a notification for the respondents to answer the petition.)

After the answers are consolidated, there would be a pre-conference and  submission of memoranda before the matter will be deemed submitted for resolution.

“Itong usapang cancellation hindi naman po siguro magtatagal ito we expect na makuha ng desisyon niyo mas maaga sa expected,” he said.

(This matter on cancellation may not take a long time, and a decision may be rendered earlier than expected.)

In a statement Tuesday, Kapatid-Families and Friends of Political Prisoners, one of the petitioners, expressed hope that Comelec will uphold their prayer to cancel Marcos’ COC.

“Our petition is plain and simple. Bongbong Marcos declared under oath that he has never been found liable for any offense that carries the penalty of perpetual disqualification from public office when in fact he had been convicted for repeated tax evasion by the courts,” said Fides Lim, spokesperson for Kapatid.

The Comelec released on October 29 the tentative lists of national and local candidates for the 2022 elections.

The final list of official candidates will be issued in December.

PDP-Laban

Meanwhile, asked if the Comelec has already issued a decision on which faction of PDP-Laban is considered legitimate, Jimenez said on Unang Balita that it has not been decided yet.

"Wala pa po eh. Hindi pa nadedesisyonan 'yan. Nagkaroon ng pagdinig po yata noong nakaraan pero wala pang desisyon," he added.

(None yet. It has not yet been decided. There was a hearing held recently, but no decision was issued yet.)

Jimenez earlier said a decision is expected by December.

To recall, the PDP-Laban faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi had filed a petition before the poll body to declare Senators Manny Pacquiao and Aquilino Pimentel III as illegal representatives of the party.

The poll body then ordered Pacquiao and Pimentel to respond to the petition filed by the Cusi wing.

Pacquiao’s group has maintained that they are the legitimate PDP-Laban group. —with a report from Hana Bordey/KG/LBG, GMA News