THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) will maintain jurisdiction over the case of the Duterte Youth party-list beyond June 30, when newly-elected officials assume their posts.
In an interview, Comelec Chairman George Garcia said they are not surrendering the jurisdiction to the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET), referring to the resolution of the registration of Duterte Youth as a party-list organization.
“The concerned party-list and its nominees have yet to be proclaimed, have yet to take oath, and, thus, cannot assume office by June 30,” said Garcia. “This only means that the jurisdiction of the case of the said party-list will remain with the Comelec.”
The poll chief said this is unlike other cases involving elected members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, where the Commission loses jurisdiction to the HRET and Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET), respectively, once they are proclaimed, have taken oath, and have assumed office by June 30.
“This is different from cases when there have been proclamations and they have taken their oath. In such cases, we cannot stop them from assuming their posts by June 30 by operation of law,” explained Garcia.
This, he said, means that the Comelec is not pressed to resolve the motion for reconsideration filed by Duterte Youth on or before June 30.
“The Comelec en banc will just perform our duty, and regularly dispose of the case in accordance with the rules,” said Garcia.
Last June 18, the Comelec Second Division ruled to cancel the registration of Duterte Youth as a party-list organization.
Last Monday, Duterte Youth filed an MR before the Comelec en banc seeking a reversal of the decision and for it to be proclaimed as among the winners in the May 12 polls.
According to Garcia, the case will immediately be raffled to one of the Comelec en banc members as soon as it is received.
“It is in our rules that, within 48 hours, the MR should be elevated to the Comelec en banc,” said the official.
And once in the Comelec en banc level, he assured that Duterte Youth has a fair chance of winning the case.
“There is a possibility that the en banc will reverse the decision of the Division, and there is also a possibility that the en banc will affirm the decision of the Division,” he pointed.
“All things being fair, there is a 50-50 chance that the decision will be for or against the party-list,” added Garcia.
‘ILLEGAL MOVE’
The Duterte Youth party-list yesterday pressed the Comelec to issue its Certificate of Proclamation, saying the poll body’s move to withhold its release pending the resolution of all disqualification petitions filed against the group is illegal.
“Despite all these ‘hao shao’ (fake) issues filed by radical leftist groups (against Duterte Youth), the Comelec is required by law and by the Constitution, to immediately produce our Certificate of Proclamation (CoP), since May 19 Proclamation Day, because the CoP certifies not our pending case but relates to/certifies our garnering of 2.3 Million Votes,” the group said in a statement.
It added: “There is no legality in the delay of its release, especially when Comelec said it is being withheld due to ‘serious and grave issues.’ Those other party-lists/candidates with pending cases such as terrorism, rape, (illegal) drugs, plunder and fake citizenship were proclaimed by Comelec.”
Duterte Youth pointed out that it was the leading party-list group voted for by soldiers through the Local Absentee Voting (LAV) and the most voted party-list by OFW communities worldwide.
“If there is a true representation of the sovereign will of millions of Filipinos, a party-list that did not buy a single vote and did not spend millions in ads, billboards and coordinators and won because of pure patriotic advocacy to fight anti-government forces, it is the Duterte Youth party-list,” it said.
Duterte Youth received a total of 2,338,564 votes in the May 12 midterm polls, making it entitled to three seats in the House of Representatives.
The Comelec, however, has said Duterte Youth nominees cannot assume their posts yet because the group has yet to be proclaimed after the poll body deferred its declaration as among the winners pending the resolution of all disqualification petitions.
A proclamation is the first of three requirements before any winning candidate can serve his or her post. After the proclamation, the candidate needs to take his or her oath of office before he or she can assume office on June 30.
The Comelec Second Division earlier cancelled Duterte Youth’s party-list registration, saying that it failed to meet the requirement to publish in two national newspapers of general circulation a copy of its registration petition, its manifestation of intent to participate, and its list of nominees and certificate of nomination, among others.
It likewise said the group mocked the electoral process when it nominated Ronald Cardema despite being overaged as a youth sector representative, and for repeatedly switching the names of its party-list nominees during the 2019 elections.
Duterte Youth disputed the allegation that the party-list group was not registered, saying that upon submission of all needed requirements, it became an accredited and registered party-list group in January 28, 2019 by the Comelec en banc “and was published by the Comelec on March 1, 2019 in its List of all approved 2019 party-list and senatorial candidates for the 2019 elections.”
The group, however, denied that it committed misrepresentation by fielding overage candidates like Cardema, noting that when Duterte Youth was approved by the Comelec in January 28, 2019, approved and published nominees were aged 27, 40, 41, 43, & 46 “because it was approved as a multi-sectoral party-list for the youth and professionals.”
“When the first set of nominees withdrew a day before election day, which is well within the substitution period, younger candidates led by then 34-year-old Ronald Cardema substituted. After winning, leftist groups filed a case against Cardema, stating he is overage, not knowing it is a multi-sectoral party-list,” it said.
