Comelec, GEG knocked but not yet out

The Supreme Court issued temporary restraining orders (TROs) stopping the Commission on Elections (Comelec), chaired by George Erwin Garcia (GEG), from implementing its (Comelec’s) “Resolution No. 11044-A, dated Sept. 4, 2024, disqualifying Mandaue City Mayor Jonas C. Cortes, former Albay Governor Noel E. Rosal, and Cebu City Mayor Michael L. Rama from participating as candidates in the 2025 elections following their respective dismissals by the Ombudsman (OMB), which include the accessory penalty of perpetual disqualification to hold public office” for the very simple reason that the OMB’s dismissal orders are under appeal and therefore have not attained finality and enforceability.

SIMPLE INDEED THE REASON WAS. And even GEG was quoted by the Philippine Star, after the TRO was issued, that “[a]ctually, the Comelec [was] ready to issue the resolution to remove this perpetual disqualification. This is just a timely TRO from the Supreme Court.” As we say in Filipino, “Sana nga, pero hindi ginawa eh” (We should have done it but, regretfully, did not). GEG further said, correctly this time, that all those imposed with perpetual disqualifications that have not attained finality—around 100—should be included in the list of candidates to be voted upon by the electorate this coming May 2025 polls.

Note, however, that the Supreme Court press release, dated Oct. 22, 2024, states that the disqualification of Rosal as governor of Albay and of his wife Carmen Geraldine as mayor of Legazpi City had been “affirmed” by the Court. So, I asked his eminent counsel Romulo Macalintal why the TRO was still issued when the disqualification had already been approved by the Court. This press release was carried by the Inquirer on Oct. 24.

In his email, Macalintal—who I know had declined an offer to be Comelec chair more than 10 years ago—explained that the disqualification the Court affirmed refers to Rosal’s candidacy for governor in the 2022 polls while the current TRO refers to his candidacy in the 2025 exercise. He lamented his client’s ouster because, according to him, “Rosal won as Governor of Albay [in the 2022 elections] with an overwhelming majority of 230,735 votes. He won in all the municipalities of Albay against the then Governor [Al Francis] Bichara” only to be ousted by the Comelec for, per Macalintal again, “allegedly releasing public funds during the prohibited period.”

IN MY COLUMN ON OCT. 14 (“Quo vadis, George Erwin Garcia?”), I wrote that, though GEG and the Comelec have been called down by the Supreme Court for committing grave abuse of discretion multiple times, I still expressed my hope that he would redeem himself. Well, given these multiple TROs, my hope has just evaporated.

Nonetheless, I am not ready to knock him out at this point plainly because he has a more crucial job—to assure honest, orderly, and peaceful elections (“HOPE”) next year. Other than the usual 3Gs—guns, goons, and gold—that have always beset our electoral exercises, two new challenges besiege the coming 2025 elections: (1) artificial intelligence (AI), and (2) the untested Miru System.

Thankfully, GEG has publicly recognized the benefits and risks posed by AI. In fact, the Comelec has directed all candidates and political parties to have an online identity. They have until Dec. 13 to register their platforms, including their social media accounts, blogs, websites, and podcasts. However, as of the last published count on Oct. 23, only 62 out of over 44,000 national and local candidates have complied with this requirement.

When asked about candidates who are endorsed by unregistered social media outlets, GEG forcefully replied, “The fact that you allow [its existence acknowledges] the presumption [that] you are benefiting from it, so it’s yours … Don’t try the Comelec, [because] we can disqualify you or [charge you with] an election offense which carries one to six years of imprisonment as penalty.” Let’s see whether the Comelec and GEG have the gravitas and the guts to enforce his big talk.

NOTEWORTHILY, THE COMELEC HAS POSTED the names of all party-list nominees on its website for public scrutiny and possible filing of petitions for the cancellation of their nominations. Again, this is a new requirement that some nominees and party-list candidates may challenge, but this time, I think the Court will uphold the constitutional authority of the Comelec to assure HOPE.

AI is at the forefront of the Nov. 5 presidential poll in the United States. A keen observation of this neck-to-neck US election will give the Comelec and our people an experiential view of how AI can be used, abused, and misused in a national exercise.

The Miru has never been tried in our country. Naturally, questions on its efficacy, susceptibility to cheating, technical specs, and vulnerability to cyberattacks have been raised by many. I cannot, at this point, accept or reject the system. For now, due to my limited space, I will leave it to the electoral watchdogs especially the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting and the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections to investigate, monitor, and critique the Miru.

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