Comelec division disqualifies Legazpi City Councilor from 2022 race

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) Second Division disqualified Legazpi City Councilor Al Barizo as candidate for councilor in the 2022 national and local elections for participating in a cash assistance payout during the campaign period.

“WHEREFORE, in view of the foregoing, the Commission (Second Division) RESOLVES to GRANT the instant Petition for Disqualification against Respondent Al Barizo,” the resolution promulgated last May 5 read.

The resolution was signed by Comelec Second Division Presiding Commissioner Marlon Casquejo, Commissioners Rey Bulay and Nelson Celis.

While the Comelec division resolved that the petitioner Joseph San Juan Armogila failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove that Barizo committed vote-buying, the body said it was “convinced” that there was substantial evidence that the Legazpi City councilor violated Section 261(v)(2) in relation to Section 68€ of the Omnibus Election Code, which prohibits the release, disbursement or expenditures of public funds by a public official or employee 45 days before election day.

Barizo was an incumbent councilor seeking reelection during the 2022 polls.

Among the evidence presented before the Comelec Second Division was a Facebook post on March 31, 2022,  allegedly posted by Barizo, showing that he and other local candidates participated in a two-day Tricycle Driver’s Cash Assistance payout activity during the prohibited period.

The Comelec Second Division noted that the Facebook post indicated that Barizo either heads or is a member of the Committee on Public Utilities and Energy (Transportation).

“In such capacity, it is undeniable that he has the wherewithal and the impetus to push for the cash dole-out intended for the tricycle drivers-- the section of the constituency he is surely connected with. Moreover, as an incumbent public official, Respondent is in a position to influence local legislation to favor the transport sector,” the resolution read.

It added that Barizo can “leverage government resources to bolster projects, programs and activities aligned with his advocacies.”

“Respondent, being an incumbent councilor and as part of the Committee on Transportation, cannot deny his participation and responsibility in the implementation of the prohibited program or activity,” the Comelec Second Division said.

The petition against Barizo was bolstered by the photographs from the Facebook post showing a man who appeared to be speaking to a crowd while wearing a shirt with the name “Barizo” printed on it.

“Although it cannot be clearly determined from the image of the photo that the man is the Respondent himself, Respondent never denied that he was actually at the said cash pay-out activity,” the resolution read.

The petitioner explicitly identified Barizo to be present in the event, together with then-Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal, and then-mayoral bet Carmen Geraldine Rosal and numerous individuals who are presumably tricycle drivers.

To corroborate the petitioner’s claim, affidavits from the tricycle drivers who attended the cash pay-out activity were submitted and they attested that Barizo was present during the said event.

“With the presence of Respondent and Spouses Rosal, who are all candidates in the 2022 NLE, during the said pay-out activity of tricycle drivers, it cannot be denied that the program was used for partisan political activity—the very evil that the law itself seeks to prevent,” the Comelec Second Division said.

“[E]ven if he is not proven to have had a hand in the illegal release or disbursement of public funds during the prohibited period, he surely was a prominent figure in the expenditure of the said funds when those were handed out to tricycle driver-beneficiaries,” it added.

Responding to the petition, Barizo admitted that there was a cash assistance pay-out for various individuals, tricycle drivers and senior citizens on March 31, 2022 and April 2,2022 in Legazpi City, but he argued that it was merely a continuation of the previous batches of cash assistance which commenced as early as August 2021.

On the other hand, Barizo denied having knowledge of the alleged Facebook posts, claiming that he was not personally handling the account.

GMA News Online reached out to Barizo through his Facebook account, but he had yet to respond as of posting time.

Barizo can appeal the ruling of the Comelec Second Division before the Comelec en banc. — DVM, GMA Integrated News