MANILA, Philippines – The Liberal Party’s vice presidential candidate called on the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to resolve its internal issues, pointing out that they have neither the time nor the space to make public their quarrels.
“Nakakalungkot kasi ang Comelec should be beyond all this. Sila iyong magse-safeguard ng election. Ang dami-daming kailangang gawing ngayon na sana di na sila nag-i-spend ng time para sa ganun,” Camarines Sur 3rd District Representative Leni Robredo said during an interview with media during the Kapihan sa Kamuning Bakery on Tuesday, January 12.
(It’s sad because the Comelec should be beyond all this. They safeguard the elections. And with everything that they need to do, hopefully they don’t spend time on things like this.)
The Comelec made headlines late last week after Chairman Andres Bautista issued a memorandum to Commissioned Rowena Guanzon, asking her to explain why she filed with the Supreme Court a comment on presidential candidate Grace Poe's motions without authorization from the en banc.
Guanzon is a member of the Comelec’s first division, one of the two divisions that earlier ruled to cancel Poe's certificate of candidacy for supposedly failing to meet two requirements for the presidency: natural-born citizenship and 10 years minimum residency.
The Comelec en banc upheld the decisions of the two divisions, prompting Poe to run to the Supreme Court (SC) to stop the poll body from enforcing the rulings. The Chief Justice immediately issued temporary restraining orders on the Comelec rulings in December. These were confirmed by the SC en banc on Tuesday.
Bautista and Guanzon figured in a very public word war, with the latter saying she is not a subordinate of the chairman, and accused Bautista of partisanship. Guanzon herself haD been accused of being biased for Liberal Party (LP) standard-bearer Manuel Roxas II.
“Wala tayong kinakampihan, wala tayong jina-judge. Sana kung mayroong di pagkakaintidihan sa loob, among them na lang, kasi naaapektuhan nito ang tiwala ng tao sa institusyon,” said Robredo, who is Roxas' running mate.
(I’m not siding with or judging anybody. If there’s a misunderstanding inside, they should settle it among themselves because it affects peoples’ trust in the institution.)
Asked if the internal scuffle had affected public perception for the polling body, Robredo said yes.
“Kapag mayroong accusations na may bias ang commissioner o in favor of one candidate, siyempre ma-e-erode nito ang integridad ng buong komisyon,” she said.
(If there are accusations of bias against one commissioner, of course this erodes the integrity of the commission.)
Robredo, herself a lawyer, said the Comelec can best show it is non-partisan through its work.
“Inaasahan natin na sila naman, sasabihin na lahat sila wala silang kinikilingan, pero sana iyong hindi pagkiling sa kahit sino, ipakita sa ginagawa, ipakita sa trabaho,” she said.
(We expect them to say they’re impartial but they can best show they’re not biased in what they do, in their work.)
Roxas and the LP have distanced themselves from the conflict between Bautista and Guanzon, pointing out that it's an internal matter.
The Comelec commissioners have since appeared to have patched things up after the poll body decided to adopt Guanzon’s comments versus Poe. A second comment has since also been filed, this time with regards to Poe’s petition for a TRO against the second division’s decision. – Rappler.com