Due process in cancellation of certificate of candidacy and nullification of proclamation

"The Due Process Issue.

Finally, we see no merit in Velasco's argument that the COMELEC annulled his proclamation as Mayor without due process. The nullification of his proclamation as a winning candidate was an outcome - a necessary legal consequence - of the cancellation of his COC pursuant to Section 78 of the OEC. A COC cancellation proceeding essentially partakes of the nature of a disqualification case.22 In the present case, Velasco filed an Answer to Panlaqui's petition to cancel or deny due course to his (Velasco's) COC; hence, he was afforded the opportunity to be heard in the cancellation of his COC.

Under the combined application of Sections 623 and 724 of Republic Act No. 6646,25 candidates who are disqualified by final judgment before the election shall not be voted for and the votes cast for them shall not be counted. If the disqualification or COC cancellation/denial case is not resolved before election day, the proceedings shall continue even after the election and the proclamation of the winner.26 In the meanwhile, the candidate may be voted for and be proclaimed if he or she wins, but the COMELEC's jurisdiction to deny due course and cancel his or her COC continues. This rule applies even if the candidate facing disqualification is voted for and receives the highest number of votes,27 and even if the candidate is proclaimed and has taken his oath of office.28 The only exception to this rule is in the case of congressional or senatorial candidates with unresolved disqualification or COC denial/cancellation cases after the elections. Pursuant to Section 17 of Article VI of the Constitution, the COMELEC ipso jure loses jurisdiction over these unfinished cases in favor of the respective Senate or the House of Representatives electoral tribunals after the candidates take their oath of office.29

Under these circumstances, Velasco's claim of denial of due process is misplaced since he was given the opportunity to be heard in a proceeding that would result in the annulment of his proclamation; due process was duly served because its essence is the opportunity to be heard and this was fully given to Velasco.30

In sum, the COMELEC resolutions canceling Velasco's COC are procedurally and substantively correct, thus negating the grave abuse of discretion that Velasco alleges.

As our final point, we are aware that Velasco won the May 14, 2007 mayoralty election in Sasmuan. We recognize, too, that we have ruled in the past that a candidate's victory in the election may be considered a sufficient basis to rule in favor of the candidate sought to be disqualified if the main issue involves defects in the candidate's certificate of candidacy. We said that while provisions relating to certificates of candidacy are mandatory in terms, it is an established rule of interpretation as regards election laws, that mandatory provisions requiring certain steps before elections will be construed as directory after the elections, to give effect to the will of the people. We so ruled in Quizon v. COMELEC and Saya-ang v. COMELEC.31

The present case perhaps presents the proper time and opportunity to fine-tune our above ruling. We say this with the realization that a blanket and unqualified reading and application of this ruling can be fraught with dangerous significance for the rule of law and the integrity of our elections. For one, such blanket/unqualified reading may provide a way around the law that effectively negates election requirements aimed at providing the electorate with the basic information to make an informed choice about a candidate's eligibility and fitness for office.

The first requirement that may fall when an unqualified reading is made is Section 39 of the LGC which specifies the basic qualifications of local government officials. Equally susceptive of being rendered toothless is Section 74 of the OEC that sets out what should be stated in a COC. Section 78 may likewise be emasculated as mere delay in the resolution of the petition to cancel or deny due course to a COC can render a Section 78 petition useless if a candidate with false COC data wins. To state the obvious, candidates may risk falsifying their COC qualifications if they know that an election victory will cure any defect that their COCs may have. Election victory then becomes a magic formula to bypass election eligibility requirements.

In the process, the rule of law suffers; the clear and unequivocal legal command, framed by a Congress representing the national will, is rendered inutile because the people of a given locality has decided to vote a candidate into office despite his or her lack of the qualifications Congress has determined to be necessary.

In the present case, Velasco is not only going around the law by his claim that he is registered voter when he is not, as has been determined by a court in a final judgment. Equally important is that he has made a material misrepresentation under oath in his COC regarding his qualification. For these violations, he must pay the ultimate price - the nullification of his election victory. He may also have to account in a criminal court for making a false statement under oath, but this is a matter for the proper authorities to decide upon.

We distinguish our ruling in this case from others that we have made in the past by the clarification that COC defects beyond matters of form and that involve material misrepresentations cannot avail of the benefit of our ruling that COC mandatory requirements before elections are considered merely directory after the people shall have spoken. A mandatory and material election law requirement involves more than the will of the people in any given locality. Where a material COC misrepresentation under oath is made, thereby violating both our election and criminal laws, we are faced as well with an assault on the will of the people of the Philippines as expressed in our laws. In a choice between provisions on material qualifications of elected officials, on the one hand, and the will of the electorate in any given locality, on the other, we believe and so hold that we cannot choose the electorate will. The balance must always tilt in favor of upholding and enforcing the law. To rule otherwise is to slowly gnaw at the rule of law.

WHEREFORE, we DISMISS the petition for lack of merit. The Status Quo Order we issued is hereby ordered IMMEDIATELY LIFTED. We DECLARE that there is no more legal impediment or obstacle to the implementation of the assailed COMELEC resolutions. No costs.

SO ORDERED."


GR No. 180051 December 24, 2008

NARDO M. VELASCO, petitioner,
vs.
COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS AND MOZART PANLAQUI.