Comelec Commissioner Kho drops SC justice bid

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Antonio Kho Jr. has withdrawn his application to become an associate justice of the Supreme Court (SC).

Kho, a fraternity brother of President Rodrigo Duterte, told the Judicial and Bar Council (JBC) about his decision on August 3, days before he was supposed to be interviewed on August 11 by the screening body as part of the application process, said Justice Secretary Menardo Guevarra, a member of the JBC.

No reason was cited for the withdrawal, according to Guevarra.

Kho, a former Justice undersecretary, is set to retire from the Comelec in February 2022.

Ten lawyers are still in the running to occupy the post vacated by retired Associate Justice Edgardo Delos Santos.

They include Court of Appeals Associate Justices Apolinario Bruselas, Ramon Cruz, Maria Filomena Singh, Ronaldo Roberto Martin, and Japar Dimaampao as well as Court Administrator Midas Marquez.

The other applicants are Sandiganbayan Presiding Justice Amparo Cabotaje-Tang, Sandiganbayan Associate Justice Geraldine Faith Econg, Finance Undersecretary Antonette Tionko, and Deputy Court Administrator Raul Villanueva.

Duterte has yet to fill the SC seat vacated by Alexander Gesmundo who was promoted to chief justice in April. — Virgil Lopez/RSJ, GMA News