Albay governor vows to fight poll case

VICTORY BUMP In this photo taken shortly after the May 9 elections, then Legazpi City Mayor Noel Rosal (second from left) is proclaimed governor of Albay. But after almost three months in office, Rosal is fighting off a disqualification case linked to the release of cash aid during his term as mayor. —GEORGE GIO BRONDIAL

LIGAO CITY, Albay, Philippines — Supporters of Albay Gov. Noel Rosal on Tuesday gathered in Legazpi City to pray for intervention as the official’s camp prepares an appeal to the disqualification ruling issued against him by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

At least 1,000 people, including the governor’s friends and relatives, attended Mass at the St. Gregory the Great Cathedral at 4 p.m.

Darlito Perez Jr., curator of Legazpi Museum, said the Mass was a “peaceful move to show support” for Rosal, a former city mayor of Legazpi, the Albay provincial capital.

In a statement on Monday, Rosal said the Comelec’s resolution was not final and executory.

“We have five days from receipt, or up to Sept. 24 to file an MR (motion for reconsideration) with the Commission en banc,” Rosal said.

He said the Comelec’s decision may also be elevated to the Supreme Court.

Prohibition

“I will continue to function as your governor until the court orders with finality … [that I] vacate the position,” Rosal said.

Comelec spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco, in a statement, said the poll body’s First Division, in a resolution promulgated on Monday, granted the petition of defeated Legazpi City council candidate Joseph Armogila over Rosal’s supposed violation of the Omnibus Election Code.

Armogila sought Rosal’s disqualification for reportedly approving, in his capacity as mayor of Legazpi City, cash aid for tricycle drivers and senior citizens.

Laudiangco said the assistance was given “sometime in April 2022, during the period of the prohibition against the release, disbursement or expenditure of public funds, which is within [45] days before the May 9 [elections],” said Laudiangco on Tuesday.

Under the election code, public officials and employees are prohibited from releasing or disbursing public funds within 45 days before Election Day.

The 12-page decision, which was made public on Monday, was signed by Commissioners Socorro Inting and Aimee Ferolino.

The division ruled that the payout of cash assistance to tricycle drivers and seniors was “not an exempted activity” because it was merely “a continuation of what has already been started since 2021.”

It added: “Nowehere in the law does it state that a continuing social welfare and development project is excluded from the prohibition nor [is] exempted.”

—WITH A REPORT FROM KATHLEEN DE VILLA 

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