TRO looms in POC polls
It’s likely that the legal team of ABAP president Ricky Vargas will go to court and seek redress for his disqualification as a candidate for POC president in the Nov. 25 polls on allegedly “vague” grounds with the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) ruling that he failed to meet the eligibility requirement of “active participation” in the General Assembly.
SBP legal counsel Aga Francisco said yesterday the understanding in law is if a rule is vague then it’s void. He pointed out that the COMELEC, organized by POC secretarygeneral Steve Hontiveros, struck out Vargas’ candidacy because he was not physically present in more than 50 percent of the 12 General Assembly meetings over the last two years. But Francisco said there is no definition of “active participation” in the rule cited by COMELEC chairman Francisco Elizalde.
Under Section 11, Article VII of the POC Constitution and By-Laws, an eligible candidate for POC president must have at least four years of experience as an NSA president of an Olympic sport and must have been active as member of the POC General Assembly for two consecutive years at the time of election. The COMELEC interpreted active membership or participation to mean physical presence in the majority of General Assembly meetings in the last two years.
While Vargas was unable to physically attend most of the General Assembly meetings, ABAP was represented and acknowledged in every roll call for a quorum. Francisco said active membership or participation could also mean the ABAP representing the country proudly in various international competitions which it has over the eight years that Vargas has been president. He said qualitative is more important than quantitative participation.
Lawyer and former PBA commissioner Chito Salud said the process by which the COMELEC issued the disqualification was flawed from the start. In the rules for the elections issued by the COMELEC, there is a provision that after a candidacy has been filed, “any member of the POC who has an objection to the candidacy of any candidate must file the objection stating the grounds therefore within one week or up to Nov. 2.” Salud said no objection was made, no written order or decision was handed down by the COMELEC explaining the reason for disqualification and no due process was accorded to Vargas.
“The COMELEC is supposed to be a professional body and we expect no less than a fair process leading to fair elections,” said Salud. “How can a disqualified candidate intelligently address being disqualified if there is no written order from the COMELEC stating the grounds of disqualification?”
ABAP secretary-general Patrick Gregorio has filed a protest in Vargas’ behalf before the COMELEC questioning the disqualification. If the COMELEC turns it down, Gregorio said the next body to approach for a reconsideration is the POC Executive Board which is made up of POC president Jose Cojuangco Jr., chairman Tom Carrasco, Elizalde as IOC honorary member, IOC member Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski, first vice president Joey Romasanta, second vice president Jeff Tamayo, Hontiveros, treasurer Julian Camacho, auditor Rep. Prospero Pichay and Executive Board members Cynthia Carrion, Jonne Go, Dave Carter and Ernesto Echauz.
Gregorio said since the POC elections are set on Nov. 25, it will be too tedious to elevate the matter to the Court of Arbitration for Sport in Lausanne. “We’re running out of time to seek redress,” he said. “All we want is a fair shake. We are pushing for Mr. Vargas’ candidacy so the voters have a choice. If after 12 years as POC president, the majority of the NSAs wants another four years for the incumbent, then so be it. But if the majority wants a change and a more dynamic and productive leadership, then let it be reflected in the elections.”
Gregorio noted that in 2011, the Philippine Sportswriters Association named Vargas as Executive of the Year and ABAP the NSA of the Year. He added that Vargas was appointed vice president of the Asian Boxing Confederation the next year. “If Mr. Vargas did not actively participate in his work as an NSA president, he surely wouldn’t have been named Executive of the Year by the PSA,” said Gregorio.
Francisco said as a last resort, Vargas’ legal team will seek a temporary restraining order to stay the elections. The court may issue a TRO for 20 days within which a hearing for a preliminary injunction will be convened.
“The violative act is the disqualification of Mr. Vargas,” explained Francisco. “So after exhausting all means, if we resort to a TRO, it will be to restore Mr. Vargas as a candidate for POC president before the elections can be held. If the court rejects our motion for an injunction, then our recourse would be to go to the Court of Appeals on the grounds of fact and law or to the Supreme Court on grounds of law although it may also look into the grounds of fact as the supreme adjudicator.”