Garcia feels for Duterte Youth over proclamation woes
Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia (Noy Morcoso/INQUIRER.net / file)
MANILA, Philippines — While understanding the strong reaction from its camp, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia said on Wednesday that the case of the Duterte Youth party-list should be resolved once and for all.
“Alam naman po natin na napakasakit talaga (We know that it’s really painful),” he said at the Kapihan sa Manila Bay media forum.
“I sympathize with them and we understand them,” Garcia added.
Duterte Youth on Tuesday asked the Supreme Court to immediately compel Comelec, sitting as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC), to proclaim the group as one of the winning party-list groups in the midterm polls.
The NBOC suspended the party-list group’s proclamation over a 2019 case, in which petitioners accused it of making untruthful statements regarding the ages of their nominees, which they say would void its registration.
The party-list law sets an age requirement for youth representatives at the maximum age of 30 years on the day of the election, but its nominee then, Ronald Cardema was disqualified by the Comelec since he was already 34 by the time the 2019 elections were held.
Nevertheless, Duterte Youth noted that it was already allowed to assume a seat in previous Congresses in 2019 and 2022.
It also questioned Comelec’s timing on the move, saying in a statement in Filipino: “If it’s that serious, why didn’t you decide on it immediately after our last hearing in 2019?”
“If not now, then when? Maybe this is the right time to look into such previous cases,” Garcia said.
“Otherwise, they will always be haunted by this 2019 case,” he added.
