37 Senate candidates in Comelec official list

The six Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioners, in an en banc meeting Friday approved the inclusion of 37 politicians in the poll body's official list of senatorial candidates for the May 2007 elections, even as some officials noted that the number could be trimmed further. This is the same number that the Comelec law department had proposed to be included in the final list of candidates, in the absence of disqualification petitions. A total of 80 politicians had filed certificates of candidacy to run for senator, as of the February 13, 2007 deadline. This number was initially reduced to 42 by the Comelec. Chairman Benjamin Abalos on Friday told reporters: "I think meron nang (resolution). Pipirmahan ko na this afternoon. Kasama ang dalawang Cayetano pero pero may asterisk (ang mga pangalan nila)," pending resolution of the disqualification cases. (There is a resolution already. I am signing this afternoon. The two Cayetanos are in but there is an asterisk beside their names.) Comelec spokesman James Jimenez had said on Tuesday that, "those given due course are not likely to be cut anymore." The law department had submitted the list to the commission en banc on February 14. But Jimenez said the Comelec law department’s list is “nothing but a piece of paper that holds no word" since the en banc has yet to make a decision. The two Cayetanos Abalos was referring to are Genuine Opposition's Alan Peter Cayetano, his namesake Joselito Cayetano,who is running under the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan party of the Marcoses. A third candidate, lawyer Oliver Lozano, also of KBL, is also the subject of a disqualification case. Alan Peter, incumbent Taguig-Pateros Representative, has sought the disqualification of Joselito, whom the former accused of being part of an administration ploy to confuse voters. Lozano, on the other hand, is seeking the lawmaker’s removal from the race. Lozano’s disqualification, in turn, is being sought by lawyer Elly Pamatong, who questioned the former's authority to represent the Kilusang Bagong Lipunan, the party founded by the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos. The official list of senatorial candidates recommended by the Comelec Legal Department is as follows: 1. Angara, Edgardo J. 2. Aquino, Benigno Simeon III C. 3. Arroyo, Joker P. 4. Bautista, Martin D. 5. Cantal, Felix C. 6. Cayetano, Alan Peter S. 7. Cayetano, Joselito P. 8. Chavez, Melchor G. 9. Coseteng, Anna Dominique M. 10. Defensor, Michael T. 11. Enciso, Ruben C. 12. Escudero, Francis Joseph G. 13. Estrella, Antonio L. 14. Gomez, Richard I. 15. Honasan, Gregorio B. 16. Kiram, Jamalul D. 17. Lacson, Panfilo M. 18. Legarda, Loren B. 19. Lozano, Oliver O. 20. Magsaysay, Vicente P. 21. Montano, Cesar M. 22. Oreta, Teresa A. 23. Orpilla, Eduardo F. 24. Osmeña, John Henry R. 25. Pangilinan, Francis N. 26. Paredes, Zosimo Jesus II M. 27. Pichay, Prospero Jr A. 28. Pimentel, Aquilino L. 29. Recto, Ralph G. 30. Roco, Sonia M. 31. Singson, Luis S. 32. Sison, Adrian O. 33. Sotto, Vicente III C. 34. Trillanes, Antonio IV F. 35. Villar, Manuel Jr B. 36. Wood, Victor N. 37. Zubiri, Juan Miguel F. - GMANews.TV