Comelec en banc issues resolution to ratify Guanzon comment

The Commission on Elections en banc on Friday issued its resolution to "validate" the comment filed by Commissioner Rowena Guanzon with the Supreme Court defending the poll body's ruling to cancel Sen. Grace Poe's candidacy for president.

The resolution was issued to "ratify and validate" the comment Guanzon and law department director Maria Norina Casingal filed last Jan. 7. 

This is "subject to the respective votes of the Chairman and concerned members of the Commission as noted in the assailed Resolutions" of the en banc, promulgated last Dec. 23 to uphold the First and Second Divisions rulings on the petitions of ex-Sen. Francisco Tatad, political science professor Antonio Contreras, and former UE law dean Amado Valdez; and lawyer Estrella Elamparo, respectively.

The filing of the comment had caused a rift between Guanzon and Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista, who said what Guanzon did was unauthorized.

Meanwhile, the en banc also ruled to "confirm and ratify the authority" of Commissioners Arthur Lim and Guanzon to represent Comelec in the cases pending before the high court, where Poe challenged the Comelec rulings.

Lim has been named the lead counsel for the case, which are due for oral arguments on Jan. 19.

The two-page resolution was signed by Bautista, with a handwritten comment below, and all six commissioners.

Below the signatures, Bautista wrote that the resolution is "subject to continuing discussions regarding the procedure of filing of pleadings in the Supreme Court and the creation of an Ethic committee." —KBK, GMA News