Election may overtake ‘disqualification’

Disqualification proceedings against aspiring elective officials could last beyond next year’s polls, an official said yesterday.

But following some changes in the handling of disqualification cases filed before the Supreme Court (SC), those sued often get a resolution of their cases a year or so after they were filed, said Cebu Provincial Elections Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano.

Aspiring candidates from Cebu like Cebu Rep. Gwendolyn Garcia (Cebu, 3rd district) and her brother, Pablo John, are facing possible disqualification after petitions were filed against them before the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Castillano told SunStar Cebu that once a disqualification case is lodged against a candidate, the Comelec will allow the candidate to respond to the allegations.

The petition is then raffled off between two Comelec divisions, which are tasked to hear the disqualification cases.

If the division issues a favorable decision to the petitioner, the respondent is given time to file a motion for reconsideration before the Comelec En Banc.

If the respondent does not get a favorable decision from the Comelec En Banc, he or she can file a petition for review with certiorari before the SC as stated in the Rules of Civil Procedure.

Castillano said following the SC’s new policies, election-related cases are often prioritized.

Like the case of former Bantayan mayor Art Despi, it took a year and a few months before the disqualification case filed against him by Mayor Christopher Escario was approved by the SC, Castillano said. Despi sat as mayor of Bantayan from 2016 until part of 2017. Escario is now sitting as mayor after Despi was disqualified.

But even with the disqualification cases, a candidate being sued can still run for public office.

In the case of the Garcia siblings, their names will still remain on the ballot until such time that the disqualification cases filed against them are resolved.