Rama asks SC’s intervention vs Comelec rule on COCs

Preventively suspended Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama filed his candidacy for reelection as Cebu City mayor on October 3. | CDN Photo/ Pia Piquero

CEBU CITY, Philippines — The camp of suspended Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama filed a Petition for Certiorari with the Supreme Court (SC) on Monday, Oct. 7, concerning the Comelec’s resolution on the disqualification of an aspirant’s candidacy.

This arose from what Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Garcia said last week regarding Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) of dismissed public officials, based on Comelec Resolution No. 11044-A, issued on Sept. 4.

For instance, in the case of dismissed Bamban, Tarlac Mayor Alice Guo, Garcia said that the Comelec would accept Guo’s COC but cited three grounds for disqualification that would apply to anyone in a similar situation.

The grounds he mentioned included being declared a nuisance candidate; a petition seeking to cancel the COC due to reasons such as age, citizenship, or voter registration, among others; and a decision from the Office of the Ombudsman perpetually disqualifying the candidate.

On Oct. 3, just hours after Rama filed his COC to seek reelection as mayor of Cebu City, the Ombudsman’s order, dated Sept. 9, was obtained by the media. The order permanently disqualified Rama from holding any government position after he was found guilty of nepotism and grave misconduct.

Rama’s Petition for Certiorari and Prohibition sought to declare Comelec Resolution No. 11044-A “unconstitutional.”

Rama’s legal counsel argued that the Comelec “gravely abused” its discretion by administratively canceling candidates’ COCs based on an executory but not yet final decision by the Ombudsman, which carried the penalty of perpetual disqualification from holding public office.

They added  that Comelec overstepped Congress’s power to determine eligibility for elective local posts and the Judiciary’s power to interpret laws and dispense justice.

Rama’s camp said that this petition aimed to ensure that his filing of the COC would not be hindered by the Ombudsman’s decision.

READ: Preventively suspended Cebu City Mayor Michael Rama banned from public office

Rama also requested the SC to issue a Status Quo Ante Order against Comelec, directing it to desist from implementing the resolution until the SC resolves his petition.

The suspended mayor’s team hopes the SC will issue a resolution before the ballots for the 2025 midterm elections are printed, which might otherwise exclude Rama’s name.

Rama also asked the SC to conduct a special raffle on the matter.

In the Judiciary, when a party has an urgent case, they may request in writing that the Executive Judge hold a special raffle instead of waiting for the regular raffle.

According to the SC, all cases filed with the court are assigned or distributed to different branches by raffle, and no case may be assigned to any branch without being raffled.

In other reports, an election lawyer also questioned the Comelec rule allowing it to deny COCs of aspirants dismissed by the Ombudsman.

“As a matter of fact, even in past elections, Comelec’s power to administratively cancel a COC is limited to final convictions in criminal cases with the accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification, and was never applied to administrative cases decided by the Ombudsman while pending appeal,” lawyer Romulo Macalintal said on Monday, Oct. 7. | with reports from Pia Piquero and Inquirer.net

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