Court rules for new POC polls
The Pasig Regional Trial Court Branch 155 has nullified last year’s POC polls for president and chairman with an order to hold new elections on Feb. 23.
The decision was penned by judge Maria Gracia Cadiz Casaclang and issued last Dec. 1.
ABAP president and newly designated PBA chairman Ricky Vargas said yesterday the ruling was a vindication of the fight for principles. Vargas was disqualified by the POC COMELEC from running for president because of an unclear provision that he must have actively participated in the General Assembly over the previous two years. Rep. Abraham Tolentino of cycling was also disqualified from running for chairman on the same provision. Active participation is not defined in the POC By-Laws.
Vargas and Tolentino attempted to secure a TRO from the court to negate the POC COMELEC order but were denied. The court, however, continued to hear the arguments of the case and finally came out with the order that was transmitted to Vargas yesterday morning.
With Vargas’ disqualification, Jose Cojuangco Jr. ran unopposed for a fourth term as POC president and took 26 of 40 votes in November last year. The position of chairman was left vacant because aside from Tolentino, the other candidate Tom Carrasco was also disqualified for not being the president of an NSA. Carrasco was formerly the triathlon president but is now secretary-general.
Last weekend, Vargas figured prominently in ending the crisis in the PBA over commissioner Chito Narvasa’s term. He was named new PBA chairman in place of Mikee Romero whose term had expired. Narvasa agreed to step down and his decision was announced before the opening of the 43rd season last Sunday. Vargas’ leadership was widely known to be the key in solving the impasse where seven PBA governors were against renewing Narvasa’s term and five were in favor.
“I am much relieved by the court decision. We fought on principle and now the NSAs are given the opportunity to choose. This decision now opens up the democratic process. A patently wrong and discriminatory position has been corrected. The reforms have begun,”said Vargas.
“I don’t want to divide, I only want to unify,” said Vargas. “I’ve just come from a trying situation in the PBA and we’re in the process of healing. When we failed to secure a TRO for the POC elections, we didn’t want to stop our fight for justice. All we wanted was to give the NSAs a choice. We wanted a democratic election.”
Vargas said the court order validates the fight for democracy in the POC. “We want to work for reforms,” he said. “We’re happy with the court decision and we’re looking forward to the new elections. The POC was represented in hearings before the court and is bound to comply with this decision.”
Vargas said he is definitely running for POC president in the new elections. He said he has yet to inform Tolentino of the court decision but with the chairmanship vacant, he foresees him to also run for the position. The court ordered the POC to include Vargas and Tolentino as candidates for president and chairman in the Feb. 23 polls.
“We never gave up our fight for justice,” said Vargas. “We saw it through. There are major undertakings ahead of us, the 2018 Asian Games and the 2019 Southeast Asian Games which we’re hosting. Let’s get the elections over with on Feb. 23 then we begin to do the hard work waiting for us.” The order for new elections is only for POC president and chairman.
Cojuangco, the equestrian chief who became POC president by acclamation in 2004, has not issued any strong reaction to the news.
“We have not received a copy of the supposed order. We cannot comment on anything yet,” he said through POC first vice president Jose Romasanta.
The POC lawyers have not received a copy of the court ruling.
Romasanta said the court ruling “is not final and executory” despite the court issuing the date for the new elections.
The Cojuangco group is expected to file a motion for reconsideration in the same Pasig City RTC. They have 15 days to do that upon the official receipt of the ruling.
A POC insider said it’s going to be long and tedious.
“Assuming you lose (the motion for reconsideration), you can still go to the Court of Appeals,” he said, referring to Cojuangco.
“And assuming you lose in the first round, then you can file another motion for reconsideration, also at the C.A. And then assuming, again, that you lose, you go to the Supreme Court,” he added. “That’s 2020 by then.” Cojuangco’s fourth term is supposed to end in 2020.