Thursday, December 20, 2007 Solima asks court to prevent Faelnar from running for ABC president
LAWYER Salvador Solima is asking the court to stop Cebu City Association of Barangay Councils (ABC) President Eugenio Faelnar from seeking reelection next week.
Faelnar has been picked as candidate for ABC president by the ruling Bando Osmeña-Pundok Kauswagan party.
Solima is asking the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to disqualify Faelnar, whom he accused of exceeding the allowed number of successive terms for barangay officials.
The Comelec Second Division has dismissed Solima’s disqualification complaint against Faelnar for lack of merit.
Solima, whom Faelnar defeated for Guadalupe barangay captain, filed a motion for reconsideration on the dismissal of his complaint.
‘Rehashed’
Solima asked that Faelnar be stopped from serving as barangay captain and seeking reelection as ABC president.
“That pending resolution of plaintiff’s (Solima) motion for reconsideration, it is requested that defendant (Faelnar) be prevented from performing the duties and functions of the barangay captain and other allied functions, and prevent him from running as president of the ABC,” read part of Solima’s six-page motion.
Lawyer Julius Ceasar Entise, ABC legal counsel, said Solima’s arguments in asking for a temporary restraining order against Faelnar are all “rehashed.”
Entise said the court will likely dismiss Solima’s petition, and that they are considering demanding damages from Solima.
“This is filed to harass and ridicule Faelnar…. So just like what we did in asking for a counter-claim (of P1 million) on the petition for disqualification, this being a civil action, we also intend to include in our answer a bigger counter-claim,” he said.
In asking for his disqualification, Solima argued that Faelnar was already on his third and last term and was not qualified to run in the Oct. 29 elections.
Faelnar, though, said that his second term was interrupted, which is recognized under the Local Government Code and cited by the Comelec in its resolution.
Interrupted
The Code states that “no barangay elective officials shall serve more than three consecutive terms in the same position” starting from the 1994 elections.
Citing the case of Lonzanida vs. Comelec, the election body’s second division said that while Faelnar indeed served three consecutive terms from 1994 to 2002, his term was interrupted when he was not proclaimed after the 1997 elections because of poll cases.
Faelnar started serving his term in February 1998, when the cases were dismissed, instead of June 1997.
The second division ignored Acting Cebu Provincial Election Officer Lionel Castillano’s recommendation favoring Solima’s petition.
The other day, Solima filed a motion for reconsideration before the division.
In his petition, Solima also sought an injunction against Faelnar. He said that unless a preliminary injunction is granted, “great and irreparable injury would result.”
Solima said he was willing to file a court-fixed bond to the effect that he will pay Faelnar all damages he might suffer once the court grants the request.
No injury
But Entise said Solima cannot convince the court into believing he will suffer if Faelnar will continue serving as barangay captain and run for ABC president.
Under the law, it is the elected first councilor, not the candidate with the second highest number of votes in the Oct. 29 elections, who will take over as barangay captain.
“Given that, for the sake of argument, Faelnar will be disqualified, (Solima) will not take his place as Guadalupe barangay captain,” he said.
“He (Solima) will suffer no injury because he has no interest whatsoever in this case. This is filed merely to harass and ridicule Faelnar,” Entise added.
For his part, Faelnar said that although he is convinced that in the end they will be dismissed, Solima’s petitions are a nuisance.
“Naunsa na man intawon na siya uy. Mamugos lang gihapon bisan napildi na’g kaupat, kaduha sa pagka-kapitan. Samok sa trabaho. Pareho ani ron o, modagan pa ko adto sa akong abogado,” he said. (What’s wrong with him?
He’s forcing himself even if he lost four times, twice for barangay captain.
He’s a nuisance to my work. Now I have to go to my lawyer.) (RHM/With KNT)
