SC junks petition to review Comelec department ruling on Escudero case

The Supreme Court (SC) en banc junked a petition seeking to nullify a Commission on Elections (Comelec) department ruling that cleared Senator Francis “Chiz” Escudero over a P30-million campaign donation from a contractor.

In a notice dated June 3, the Court dismissed the December 2025 petition for review filed by high school teacher John Barry Tayam for "being the wrong remedy."

"The Court resolved to dismiss the petition for review dated December 23, 2025, filed by the petitioner, for being the wrong remedy," the notice reads.

In March, the SC admitted Tayam's petition for review.

GMA News Online reached out to Escudero for comment.

To recall, Tayam asked the SC to review the recent ruling of the Comelec's Political Finance and Affairs Department (PFAD), which recommended the termination of the probe into Escudero and campaign donor Lawrence Lubiano, president of Centerways Construction and Development Inc.

The PFAD previously recommended terminating the investigation on Escudero and Lubiano, deeming that the contractor and his company are distinct legal entities. Escudero and Lubiano were not found to violate the Omnibus Election Code, it said. —LDF, GMA News