The Commission on Elections en banc dismissed all motions for reconsideration on the disqualification cases against presumptive president Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. that were earlier junked by the poll body.
Comelec Commissioner George Garcia said the petitioners could still make an appeal before the Supreme Court.
The decisions came a day after the May 9 synchronized national and local elections where Marcos, with 98.07 percent of the election results processed, cemented a landslide victory with 31.02 million votes.
In two separate resolutions, the Comelec en banc affirmed the resolution of the Second and First Divisions on the disqualification cases filed by former political prisoner Bonifacio Ilagan, human rights advocates and other Martial law victims; members of the Akbayan Citizens Action Party; and National Commission on Muslim Filipinos commissioner Abubakar Mangelen.
The petitioners claimed that Marcos should not be allowed to run for president because of his conviction for violating the Internal Revenue Code, which carried a penalty of perpetual disqualification from holding any public office.
But the en banc said all three MRs were junked for lack of merit, adding that the tax conviction of Marcos does not involve moral turpitude and therefore cannot be a ground for disqualification.
The ruling was signed by Comelec chairman Saidamen Pangarungan and Commissioners Marlon Casquejo, Socorro Inting, Aimee Ferolino, and Rey Bulay.
Lawyer Vic Rodriguez, Marcos’ spokesperson, said the decision showed that the poll body is true to its mandate to be fair to all candidates.
“We have always believed that the poll body will stay true to its mandate to deliver fair, honest, and credible elections, including the dismissal of unmeritorious and politically-motivated petitions such as these,” Rodriguez said.
“The unanimous en banc decision has proven, once and for all, that no amount of undue political pressure can weaken the resolve of the honorable Commission to be on the side of truth and justice,” he added.
