SC ruling on Poe case ‘lacks doctrinal value,’ Tatad says

The Supreme Court’s decision affirming with finality its ruling allowing Senator Grace Poe to run for president “lacks doctrinal value,” former Senator Francisco Tatad, through counsel Atty. Manuelito Luna, said in a second motion for reconsideration filed with the Supreme Court.

Last Saturday, the high court released its resolution affirming with finality its decision in favor Poe.

Voting 9-6, the high court stated that there is no material misrepresentation on the part of Poe when she declared in her certificate of candidacy that she is a natural-born Filipino and a resident of the Philippines for 10 years.

The high court in the same ruling also said that the Comelec committed grave abuse of discretion when it ordered Poe’s COC to be cancelled. It added that Comelec has no jurisdiction to decide on the qualifications of a president and vice president.

The high court added that it will no longer accept any more pleadings and motions related to Poe’s case.

Defying the high court’s order, a second motion for reconsideration was filed Monday.

Tatad, through Luna, said the high court’s ruling is a mere opinion and “lacks doctrinal value.”

He said it has no doctrinal value because “no majority opined that the petitioner is a natural born-Filipino citizen and has met the residency requirement.”

Luna said that while the voting to dismiss the petition was 9-6, concurring and dissenting opinions would show that only 7 justices believed that Poe is a natural-born Filipino citizen.

Echoing Senior Associate Justice Antonio Carpio’s dissent, Luna said “since all 15 members of the Court actually took part in the deliberations on the issue and voted on the sole issue of whether to grant or dismiss the petitions, and less than a majority opined that she is a natural-born citizen, then there is no ruling on her citizenship status.”

He also said that if Comelec has no jurisdiction to rule on the merits of Poe’s case, all the more that the Supreme Court cannot rule on the merits of the case.

“The Court cannot rule on the merits, that is, decide the qualifications of a candidate because there is no Comelec decision to review on the merits, the annulled decision of the Comelec being non-existent,” Luna said.

He insisted that there is no constitutional or statutory provision allowing the high court to initially decide the qualifications of presidential and vice presidential candidates before the elections.

“Respondent-movant strongly believes that the dissents of the minority mirror the correct reading and application of constitutional, legal and jurisprudential parameters… In these lights, the Court should grant reconsideration and dismiss the petitions for lack of merit,” Luna said. JE

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