Rosal proclaimed Albay governor; Salceda legal plea dismissed

Albay Gov. Noel Rosal casts his vote in Legazpi City for the midterm elections on May 12, 2025.. | PHOTO: Ma. April Mier-Manjares

LEGAZPI CITY – The provincial board of canvassers in Albay named Noel Rosal as the governor of Albay province on Tuesday, May 13, shortly after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) rejected the motion of the camp of 2nd District Rep. Joey Salceda to suspend the proclamation.

Before the proclamation at the capitol, lawyer Jong Bonafe, legal counsel of Salceda, said Rosal should not be proclaimed as the governor, citing a pending case.

Bonafe asked that the poll body proclaim Salceda who obtained the second highest number of votes, in accordance with the Section 34 of the Comelec Resolution 11102.

“Along these particular provisions which I cited, this Comelec resolution prohibits proclamation of a winning candidate who was qualified by judgement,” Bonafe said.

In 2024, the Office of the Ombudsman ordered Rosal’s dismissal from service and permanently barred him from holding any public office due to grave misconduct, oppression, and conduct prejudicial to the best interest of the service, when he ordered reassignment of several department heads.

In January 2025, the Supreme Court issued a temporary restraining order on Comelec’s order to disqualify Rosal from running as governor.

Rosal’s lead counsel, lawyer Gauttier Dupaya, said he was “quoting only a denial of the motion of reconsideration [of the Court of Appeals] on issuance of Temporary Restraining Order, not the merits of the case itself.”

Lawyer Maria Aurea Bo-Bunao, the provincial election supervisor, said the motion to suspend proclamation has no basis in resolution 1002 section 34.

“The people have spoken again, for the second time,” Rosal told the Inquirer on Tuesday.

Rosal got a total of 404,015 votes, defeating Salceda, a seasoned lawmaker.

In a Facebook post, Salceda said he remains committed to serving the province.

“I have had no greater honor than to love and serve Albay. My commitment to serving Albay remains—unyielding, unwavering, and unending. Albay forever,” he said.

READ: Rosal leads Albay gubernatorial race

In 2022, Rosal also won as governor against former Gov. Al Francis Bichara, but was unseated for violating the provision of the Omnibus Election Code which prohibited the release, disbursement, or expenditure of public funds during the 45-day election ban.