Comelec appeals ruling on Poe

Senator Grace Poe. PHOTO BY: JAY MORALES

THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court for a reconsideration of its ruling that upheld the natural-born status and 10-year residency of independent presidential candidate Sen. Grace Poe, citing the absence of a “majority vote” which made the decision “inefficacious.”

In a 56-page motion,  the Comelec sought to overturn and set aside the high court’s March 8 ruling that cleared the way for Poe to run for president and to reaffirm the poll body’s earlier resolutions disqualifying her from the elections.

Election Commissioner Arthur Lim, who authored the motion, explained that the Comelec invoked the high court’s internal rules, particularly Section 2 of Rule 12, which states that if the necessary majority vote cannot be attained in a case, the court shall deliberate on it.

If after a redeliberation still no majority vote is reached, the court should dismiss the case and affirm the order or judgment appealed from, said Lim.

The Comelec official explained that the seven magistrates who voted that Poe is natural-born was not the majority of the full court of 15 justices since five justices dissented while three did not give their opinion. He said the majority vote in such case should have been eight.

“The three abstentions are considered votes. It is our position that the entire membership of the court participated in the deliberations because the right to vote includes the right not to vote,” Lim told reporters Tuesday.

He added that in the poll body’s motion for reconsideration, it stressed that the decision was “inefficacious and not binding” since Poe’s citizenship was resolved in the affirmative by less than a majority of the court.

But Chief Justice Maria Lourdes Sereno had earlier insisted that there had been a clear majority, saying that of the nine who voted to grant Poe’s petition against her disqualification, seven agreed that Poe was natural-born. She also said that only 12 of the 15 justices participated in the voting on that particular issue.

Lim stressed that Poe’s citizenship eligibility cannot be “left hanging in the air” by letting the Presidential Electoral Tribunal deal with it later in case she wins the presidential race as this could possibly create political instability.

“That’s why we are asking that the SC study the case again, to conduct a redeliberation and revoting so they can talk about the citizenship issue and avoid political instability [in the future],” he said.

On March 8, the Supreme Court had ruled that Poe “is a qualified candidate for President in the May 9 elections,” saying she met the requirements to seek the highest post of the land being both natural-born and a Philippine resident for at least 10 years.

Lim also said that the Comelec also sought for the reconsideration of the high court’s decision that the Comelec committed grave abuse in disqualifying Poe. But he declined to discuss this further noting that the case was still pending in court.