2 women eyed for Comelec—Brillantes

Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Commission on Elections Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. on Thursday said he has recommended two names to Malacañang to fill a vacant commissioner slot in the Comelec, though President Benigno Aquino III is not exactly asking for nominees.

“They (Malacañang) are not asking for it, we’re the ones making suggestions, if these people can qualify,” Brillantes said.

He declined to give the names of his choices but said both were women, and one was an “insider” while the other was an “outsider.”

“I asked for a female commissioner for gender equality. They’re saying it’s only here at Comelec where there’s no woman,” Brillantes said.

The seven-member Comelec will have a vacancy because Malacañang did not renew the ad interim appointment of Commissioner Augusto “Gus” Lagman. Without a new appointment, Lagman can no longer continue serving at the poll body.

Asked if there are other senior Comelec officials applying for the position, Brillantes said he did not know of anyone, but would welcome “insiders” applying “so that the President have a lot to choose from.”

If a female commissioner will not be considered, Brillantes said he would want someone who is lawyer and an information technology expert.

“Our experience with Gus is that while he was an IT expert, it somehow affected our quasi-judicial functions. [Our adjudication task] was somewhat slowed down because the cases [up for decision] would take a long time on his desk since they would first be studied by his lawyers. Then he would study it first before signing,” he explained.

Lagman was the second non-lawyer commissioner. The first, Luzviminda Tancangco, who served from 1998 to 2004, was also the last female commissioner.