Comelec lifts suspension of proclamation of Benguet House bet

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Election (Comelec) Second Division has lifted the order of suspension of proclamation of Eric Yap as lone district representative of Benguet due to lack of evidence on the petition filed against him.

In an interview with the media on Friday, Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia said the Second Division denied the petition to cancel Yap’s certificate of candidacy (COC) for alleged material misrepresentation with regard to his citizenship due to three specific reasons.

“Number 1, there is a technicality issue in the issue of verification. The petition itself was not verified. Number 2, there is almost no evidence attached to the petition regarding the alleged lack of citizenship of the respondent. And number 3, it appears that the remedy that was filed was wrong; it should be cancellation of candidacies,” Garcia explained. 

READ: Comelec 2nd Division cancels Duterte Youth party-list’s registration

” Therefore, all of that was combined, and the division deemed it appropriate to dismiss the said case,’ he added. 

 Meanwhile, Garcia said the petitioner still has the right to file a motion for reconsideration.

“We will see in the period of five days if there is a motion for reconsideration. That is why the provincial board of canvassers of Benguet may not convene to proclaim him. Because we are still waiting for the so-called certificate of finality and entry of judgment,” Garcia said. 

“If the petitioner files a motion for reconsideration, the very implementation of that decision may be stopped.”

Based on the petition, Yap allegedly “committed a material misrepresentation when he stated under oath in his COC that he is a natural-born Filipino citizen and that he is eligible to run for the office he seeks to be elected.”

The petitioner specifically asserted that he found out that “the respondent’s parents are not Filipino citizens and has lived most of his life in China.”

“He also claims that Respondent falsified his birth certificate and Philippine Passport to make it appear that he is a Filipino Citizen when he is actually not. In sum, Petitioner asserts that Respondent is not a natural born citizen of the Philippines; hence, Respondent is not qualified to be a candidate for the position he is running for,” the resolution also read.

Yap won the congressional seat in the last 2025 midterm elections. /gsg