Comelec mulls raps vs church this week

THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) is contemplating on filing appropriate charges against the Diocese of Bacolod for posting the controversial "Team Patay and Team Buhay" poster at the wall of the San Sebastian Cathedral in Bacolod City.

Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes in a radio interview said he is saddened that the church continues to ignore the law.

He said that until the Supreme Court pins it's ruling on the petition filed by the Diocese of Bacolod, they will remain confused on the compliance of the church on the election laws.

Friday last week, the Diocese of Bacolod through its legal counsel filed a Petition for Certiorari and Prohibition with Application for Injunction and TRO vs the Comelec order on the controversial “Team Buhay and Team Patay” poster on the wall of the San Sebastian Cathedral.

Lawyer Ralph Sarmiento, one of the three lawyers of the Diocese, said the petition was received by the Supreme Court last Friday morning.

The petition assails the Comelec orders directing Bishop Vicente Navarra to remove the “Team Patay/Team Buhay” tarpaulins posted on the wall of Bacolod San Sebastian Cathedral for being “unconstitutional and void invoking the right to freedom of expression and the principle of separation of Church and State."

Sarmiento said the petition likewise seeks to permanently restrain the Comelec and its officials from enforcing the questioned orders.

The Diocese refused to remove the oversized "Team Patay/Team Buhay" tarpaulin, because it is the church's expression against the Reproductive Health Law and that the church is only guiding the Catholic faithful.

"We will commence the proceedings for the filing of election cases against whoever is behind this, unless restrained by the Supreme Court," said Brillantes pointing to the alleged violation of the church in posting an oversized tarpaulin.

The Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines has also issued a statement defending the Diocese of Bacolod by saying that the church is only doing a "creative expression" against the Reproductive Health Law.