THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc has denied the petition of Pilipino Lakas ng Bayan (PDP-Laban) faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi to reopen the filing of certificates of candidacy (COC) for the upcoming national elections, Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said on Wednesday, January 12, 2022.
Jimenez said the petition calling for the postponement of the 2022 national election to May 2025 was also denied.
“Denied...basta unanimous, it was denied... Both of them resoundingly denied,” he said.
“One of the justifications forwarded by the commission in response to the allegation is that, obviously, the allegation does not take into consideration all of the other preparatory activities that are being conducted by the Comelec. That in fact the setting of the date of the filing of COCs is not arbitrary in any way. Kaya dineny natin ‘yung kanilang request,” he added.
Jimenez said petitioners may appeal before the Supreme Court.
The Cusi faction filed the petition on December 31, 2021, saying parties should be given more time to decide on their poll bets.
Senator Christopher “Bong” Go earlier filed his COC for vice president under the Cusi faction, while Senator Ronald del Rosa filed his COC for president.
Go and Dela Rosa later withdrew their COC. Go subsequently filed another COC for president but under Pederalismo ng Dugong Dakilang Samahan (PDDS), a party allied with the PDP-Laban.
He later withdrew again his COC for president, leaving the PDP-Laban Cusi faction with no candidates for the May 9 elections.
The other faction of PDP-Laban led by Senator Aquilino Pimentel III fielded Senator Manny Pacquiao as their presidential bet.
In the same press briefing, Jimenez said the Comelec en banc also denied the bid of Malasakit Movement to be accredited as a party-list group due to lack of merit.
“The Malasakit Movement’s accreditation was denied because they failed to meet the requirement for a sectoral party-list organization,” Jimenez said.
“They [were] unable to prove that they represent a marginalized and underrepresented sector,” he added.
The Malasakit Movement was led by former Metro Manila Development Authority spokesperson Celine Pialago.
The Comelec approved, however, the accreditation of Mothers for Change partylist led by former Presidential Communications and Operations Office (PCOO) Assistant Secretary and ex-Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) Executive Director Mocha Uson and volleyball player Michelle Gumabao.
“They (Mothers for Change) met all the requirements for a sectoral organization. That was the justification of the decision,” Jimenez said. (SunStar Philippines)