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Wednesday, March 17, 2004
Comelec disqualifies Eddie Gil
By Marie Neri
MANILA -- And then there were five.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) disqualified businessman Eddie Gil Tuesday from the presidential race on May 10 for being a nuisance candidate.
The Comelec's second division cited Gil's failure to launch a nationwide campaign and discrepancies he allegedly entered in his certificate of candidacy (COC) as the basis for his disqualification.
Gil will file a motion for reconsideration of the second division's ruling as he vowed to fight his disqualification.
The second division's decision came following a petition for disqualification filed against Gil by the Bangon Pilipinas party of presidential contender Bro. Eddie Villanueva.
In the resolution, the second division headed by Commissioner Mehol Sadain said "respondent did not present any evidence that will prove his alleged capability to mount a nationwide campaign in his personal capacity."
No denial
The division said Gil neither "denied" nor "controverted" news reports that he issued bouncing checks to drivers, hotels and restaurant managers in a campaign sortie in Cagayan de Oro City last month, which is a clear indication that the standard-bearer of Pilipinas Isang Bansa, Isang Diwa (Pibid) has no financial capability to launch a nationwide campaign.
The members of the second division said what convinced them further to declare Gil as a nuisance candidate was an affidavit executed by Gil's erstwhile senatorial candidate Eduardo "Eddie" Ilarde, who stated that Gil had no sufficient funds to finance his candidacy.
Affidavit
"The affidavit of former senator Ilarde shed more light to this commission, as stated that Pibid had no campaign manager, no meaningful schedule of campaign and does not even have handbills or posters," the resolution added.
Aside from Ilarde, other senatorial bets who withdrew as members of Gil's party were actress Pilar Pilapil, Jose Floro Crisologo and retired police official Ramon Montaņo.
Moreover, the commission charged Gil of "inconsistencies" and of ridiculing the forthcoming elections because he placed wrong information in his COC.
"Without being repetitive, respondent, in his 2004 COC committed inexcusable blunder when he wrote 'Filipino' in the blank space provided for gender or sex; respondent wrote businessmen instead of businessman; respondent wrote Erlinda Gil instead of writing the full maiden name of his spouse," the resolution further said.
Falsification
In an examination of the 2001 COC and 2004 COC of Gil, the commission discovered that Gil allegedly falsified information in both documents as he put in the 2001 certificate that his date and place of birth was Feb. 7, 1944 in Masbate while in 2004 his date and place of birth was Feb. 4, 1944 in Zamboanga.
"Verification of records in Comelec national central file division, on the other hand, revealed that respondent's birth date in the Computerized Voters' List (CVL) and in his voter's registration record is Feb. 7, 1043," the resolution said.
Former Comelec law department chief Jose Balbuena, who is Gil's lawyer, asked the Comelec for a five-day grace period to file a motion for reconsideration before the Comelec en banc.
Gil, for his part, described the decision as "biased" as he blamed Bangon Pilipinas group of presidential contender Bro. Eddie Villanueva for his disqualification.
"I will not accept the resolution of the Comelec because it did not come from the commission but from Eddie Villanueva's cult," Gil said.
(March 17, 2004 issue)
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