An Waray party-list Representative Florencio Noel (Photo from An Waray Facebook page)
MANILA, Philippines — An offense committed 10 years ago is haunting Visayas-based An Waray party-list.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has stripped the organization off its registration.
This decision puts at risk the seat of An Waray Rep. Florencio Noel.
The Comelec’s second division had revoked the registration of An Waray after the group was found to have violated the rules of the poll body.
These rules related to the action in which An Waray had allowed its then-second nominee to assume its one seat in the House of Representatives during the 16th Congress.
The second nominee, at that time, was Attorney Victoria Isabel Noel.
She assumed the post of a lawmaker despite the fact that Comelec had not given its go signal for the move.
An Waray proceeded to place its nominee at the Batasang Pambansa, “knowing ‘full well’ that the Comelec has not issued a certificate of proclamation entitling her to do so,” said the poll body in a statement.
“Without a certificate of proclamation for its second nominee, An Waray was entitled to one seat only in relation to the 2013 national and local elections. Thus, Atty. (Victoria) Noel’s assumption to office as Representative of An Waray had no legal basis,” it explained.
It recalled An Waray, when it was first proclaimed as one of the winning party-lists, was initially allotted two seats in the House.
However, Comelec said the initial two seats promised to An Waray were “subsequently recomputed to be one seat only.”
This was based on the resolution of the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) in August 2014.
According to the poll body, An Waray had used an earlier NBOC resolution promulgated in May 2013 as its sole basis to allow Attorney Victoria Noel to take a spot in the chamber.
But the poll body said, the resolution “expressly stated that the seats initially allocated is ‘without prejudice to the proclamation of other parties, organizations or coalitions which may later on be established to be entitled to one guaranteed seat and/or additional seats.’”
The poll body also noted that the recomputation, which reduced the congressional seats allotted to An Waray, was upon an order of the Supreme Court.
This was connected to the proclamation of Abang Lingkod party-list as one of the winners in the 2013 party-list race.
This was also in view of the then-pending case of the Senior Citizens party-list before the high court.
With this, Comelec division ruled that Victoria Noel’s stint at the House without legal basis was proof that An Waray clearly violated the Party-List System Act.
Under the law, among the grounds for the refusal or cancellation of a party-list’s registration is if “it violates or fails to comply with laws, rules or regulations relating to elections.”
Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco, however, explained the ruling is not final and executory as An Waray can still file a motion for reconsideration.
So what happens to the other Noel?
Florencio Noel currently serves as the representative of An Waray.
The organization had secured 385,460 votes in the 2022 polls, earning one seat in Congress.
“The House of Representatives has the power to expel any member who fails to continually possess all the qualifications and none of the disqualifications,” Laudiangco said in a message.
He noted the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET) is the sole judge for all issues concerning memberships in the chamber.
Laudiangco said HRET “may take cognizance of a quo warranto case questioning the qualification, or the lack [thereof], of any sitting member.”
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