The battle royale in the House between incumbent Marinduque
Rep. Gina Ongsiako Reyes and defeated rival Lord Allan Velasco is far from over
and complicating ramifications involve the Supreme Court where Velasco’s
father, Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco, is a member as well as the chair
of the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET).
To refresh you readers’ memory, the provincial board of
canvassers of Marinduque proclaimed Reyes as rightful winner in 2013 and she
was proclaimed in a mass-swearing in by no less than the President at
Malacanang as well as by Speaker Belmonte at the opening of Congress in July of
2013. Since then Reyes has sat as a member of the House.
The first complication came in when Comelec began
questioning her assumption into office, based on the claim on an anonymous
blogger that Reyes allegedly is not a Filipino citizen and in fact uses an
American passport. On this basis Comelec proclaimed Velasco winner. Reyes has
fought this issue of her alleged US citizenship and interestingly,
Comelec Chair Sixto Brillantes himself filed a dissenting opinion stating that
evidence on hand vs. Reyes (from the unnamed blogger) is mere hearsay.
XXX
In answer to this issue, the Reyes camp asserts that Sec.
17, Art. VI, the “Legislative Department,” of the Constitution provides that
all questions pertaining to the election of House members fall under the
jurisdiction of the HRET. This constitutional principle has been upheld over
the past year, enabling Reyes to stay in office.
Recently, however, in anticipation of convening of HRET for
the second regular session of the 16th Congress this coming Aug. 28, a “draft
decision” is being circulated among HRET members, allegedly prepared by a
prominent SC justice-member of the HRET (a copy was sent to Reyes by a
concerned House member). The Reyes camp alleges that this “draft decision” aims
to convince Comelec and the SC to disqualify her in favor of Justice Velasco's
son. Thus, it allegedly seeks "to precondition and influence the
disposition by the other (HRET) members” of (this) case."
article from:
POLITICAL TIDBITS
by BELINDA OLIVARES - CUNANAN
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