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Friday, September 27, 2002
Palawan case raises hope of Navarro
By Jasming G. Suma-oy
IF THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) held a special recall election in Palawan, whose petitioners made certain lapses, there is a bigger chance it will do the same in Cebu, Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) president Jose Navarro said.
“Madayon gyud. Ipa-schedule gyud, wa nay lalis,” Navar-ro told Sun.Star, without revealing, his basis for saying so. (It will finally push through. No doubt about it.)
Navarro was chairman of the preparatory recall assembly that approved the recall resolution against Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña last July 6 for loss of confidence.
After Comelec closed last Wednesday the recall elections in Puerta Princesa City, Palawan, former mayor Edward Hagedorn led by almost 3,000 votes over incumbent mayor Dennis Socrates, whom the barangay leaders wanted recalled for allegedly having no respect for them.
However, Comelec cannot proclaim Hagedorn yet because of a temporary restraining order (TRO) from the Supreme Court (SC).
A third candidate, Vicente Sandoval, filed a petition for disqualification against Hagedorn, saying the three-term mayor could no longer run for the same post.
The Comelec dismissed the petition, but Socrates will continue to be mayor until the SC lifts the TRO and finally rules on the petition for disqualification against Hagedorn.
In Cebu City, Election Officer Simaco Labata yesterday said his office received a directive from Pio Jose Joson, Comelec deputy executive director for operations, to use the voters’ registration records (VRRs) copy for the provincial office in verifying the signatures of the barangay officials in the petition.
The copy of the city election office for the south district is with the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal, which is hearing the election protests of lawyer Aristotle Batuhan and Rep. Antonio Cuenco.
The city election assistants are now trying to retrieve the second copies of the VRRs and arrange this.
Upon registration, a voter fills up three copies of the VRRs: one for the city election office and two each for the central file of provincial office and national office.
Labata said he had informed the Comelec en banc that his office had stopped processing the recall documents because of the petition for nullification that was filed by some barangay officials.
The Regional Trial Court (RTC) had subsequently issued a TRO and then a status quo order prohibiting them from evaluating the recall documents.
But if the Comelec en banc orders them to proceed, Labata said they will continue with the evaluation process even if the court has yet to resolve issue on whether the RTC has jurisdiction over the recall move.
“So both parties would know we are not favoring anyone,” the election officer said.
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