Comelec rules out Sanchez family

WHILE the family of the late vice governor Greg Sanchez is willing to pursue the election protest filed against him, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said they are no longer a “party of interest” in the case.

Comelec provincial supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano told Cebu Daily News yesterday that since the vice governor died of cancer, his  family had no legal standing to take on  his case.

“The vice governor’s office is not a property that one could inherit,” Castillano said.

He said the party of interest is now Vice Gov. Agnes Magpale, who assumed office after Sanchez’s death.

Sanchez’s eldest daughter, Grecylda “Gigi” Sanchez- Zaballero, said the family will continue to pursue the case filed by businessman Glenn Soco.

Magpale received a Comelec memorandum asking whether she intends to intervene in the election protest.

Magpale said she will just wait for the Comelec recount to determine who really won between Soco and Sanchez in last year’s elections. She said she will step down if it turns out that Soco won and will continue serving as vice governor if Sanchez won.

Castillano said the recount process will be quicker since the late vice governor could no longer register objections as a protestee and last year’s elections was automated.

He said it will be up to the Comelec second division to determine the appreciation of the ballots and proclaim the real winner.