Senatorial aspirant Harry Roque / Mary Rose Sagarino
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Senatorial aspirant Harry Roque said that former Comelec Commissioner Rowena Guanzon’s dissenting opinion on the disqualification case against presidential aspirant Ferdinand ‘BongBong’ Marcos Jr. is now but a mere “scrap of paper” and has no official value.
Roque said this was because Guanzon has already retired and there was no promulgation of a decision yet by the Comelec’s First Division.
Guanzon retired on Wednesday, February 2.
Roque said tax evasion is different from failure to submit tax returns. He said although Bongbong has a conviction for failure to submit tax returns it does not involve moral turpitude that could disqualify him as claimed by Guanzon.
He said moral turpitude contemplates a crime that involves moral depravity.
“Karumal-dumal. You know yung issue of talagang wala kang moral standing sa komunidad, rape, graft and corruption, but the mere filing of the returns is not,” said Roque.
“Ang sabi pa nga ng second division, you cannot give it retroactive effect because the PD (Presidential Decree) only became effective prospectively and do not cover the years for which he did not file income tax returns,” he added.
Roque said the opinion of Guanzon who was his colleague at the UP College of Law goes against the Comelec’s rule.
“That dissenting opinion should have not been released in the first place as it is contrary to the internal rules of the Comelec and all collegial bodies,” he said.
COMELEC CHAIR
Roque also revealed that the position of Comelec chairman was first offered to him but he declined because of his loyalty to President Rodrigo Duterte.
Roque said the position was offered to him when he was still the president’s spokesperson.
“That is why I decided not to accept it because I might destroy the integrity of the commission knowing that I am very loyal to the president who at that time, was contemplating a run for the senate and also the daughter was running as well,” he said. /rcg
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