Cagayan governor set to appeal DQ order

Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba —PHOTO FROM CAGAYAN PROVINCIAL INFORMATION OFFICE FACEBOOK PAGE

Cagayan Gov. Manuel Mamba is appealing his disqualification, as ordered by the First Division of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), with the commission en banc, saying he will “exhaust all legal remedies available to us.”

The 23-page resolution of the Comelec First Division disqualifying Mamba from running in the May 9, 2022, election was issued on Wednesday and stemmed from a complaint filed by lawyer Victorio Casauay.

READ: Cagayan gov ordered disqualified in latest Comelec ruling

The poll body disqualified Mamba for violating Comelec Resolution No. 10747 when the governor provided financial aid, scholarship grants and vehicles to his constituents in Cagayan using public funds during the 45-day spending ban in the 2022 elections.

But Mamba, in a text message on Wednesday, said he had yet to receive a copy of the disqualification order. A motion for reconsideration would be filed with the Comelec en banc within five days, he added.

The Comelec First Division, composed of Presiding Commissioner Socorro Inting and Commissioners Aimee Ferolino and Ernesto Ferdinand Maceda Jr., declared the gubernatorial post in Cagayan vacant.

READ: SC reverses Comelec dismissal of DQ petition vs Cagayan governor

The division also said that the law of succession “shall apply, and the vice governor shall automatically succeed and shall hold office as such.”

Vice Gov. Melvin Vargas Jr. has yet to comment on the latest Comelec order.

Election offense

The division also asked the Comelec law department to initiate a preliminary investigation “for the possible filing of an election offense case” against Mamba for allegedly violating election laws on vote-buying.

On May 5, 2022, the petitioner, Casauay, filed a case accusing Mamba, together with his wife Mabel and nephew Francisco III, who were running for representative and vice governor, respectively, of conspiring to provide financial aid, scholarship grants and vehicles to their constituents under the provincial government’s “No Barangay/Town Left Behind” and “Oplan Tulong sa Barangay” programs.

The division denied Mamba’s contention that the 45-day prohibition on the release of public funds promulgated in December 2021 by the Comelec does not cover local governments and does not include ongoing noninfrastructure programs.

The division also ruled as “unjustified” Mamba’s argument that at the time the funds were released and disbursed for the questioned programs, he was the incumbent governor and was expected to discharge his functions for his constituents.

“While [Mamba] indeed has a duty to serve his constituents, it does not mean that he can do so as he sees fit. Regardless of the position held, a public official does not have unbounded freedom to exercise their powers, more so if there are restrictions set by law,” the resolution said.

Commissioners Inting and Ferolino voted to disqualify Mamba. Maceda issued a separate opinion agreeing with Mamba’s disqualification, but only for the six projects worth P68.833 million that were not covered by the certificate of exception for programs, projects and activities related to social welfare projects and services.