Comelec affirms ruling vs. Pacificador's petition
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has junked an appeal of former assemblyman Arturo Pacificador to reverse its earlier ruling dismissing his petition to stop the proclamation of Antique Gov. Salvacion Zaldivar-Perez.
In a five-page ruling promulgated on January 24 by the Comelec en banc, the poll body affirmed the May 28, 2007 resolution of the Comelec's Second Division denying Pacificador's petition to suspend the canvassing of votes and the proclamation of Perez.
It said the suspension of canvassing and proclamation "has already been mooted" by the proclamation and assumption to office of Perez.
A special provincial board of canvassers proclaimed Perez on June 29, 2007 with a margin of more than 13,000 votes against Pacificador based on results from the province's 1,855 precincts.
The Comelec resolution was signed by then Acting Chair Resurreccion Borra and concurred by Commissioners Florentino Tuason Jr., Romeo Brawner, Rene Sarmiento, Nicodemo Ferrer and Moslemen Macarambon.
Pacificador had petitioned for the suspension of canvassing of votes and the proclamation of Perez until a disqualification case he filed against Perez had been resolved.
The former assemblyman along with former Rep. Jovito Plameras Jr., who also ran but lost in the gubernatorial elections, had sought the disqualification of Perez and seven of her partymates in the Nationalist People's Coalition (NPC) for allegedly violating the ban on public spending during the election period.
The disqualification case was, however, dismissed for lack of merit by the Comelec's First Division on January 25, 2007.
In its resolution dismissing Pacificador's appeal, the Comelec affirmed its Resolution No. 8062 that provides that there will be no suspension of proclamation of winning candidates with pending disqualification cases.
The Comelec said the suspension of of proclamation of winning candidates "may only be made where sufficient justification warrants that interference be made."
It said Pacificador's petition failed to provide proof to justify the suspension of any proclamation.