Case Digest (G.R. No. 193256)
Facts:
ABC (Alliance for Barangay Concerns) Party List, represented herein by its chairman, James Marty Lim, petitioner, G.R. No. 193256, March 22, 2011, Supreme Court En Banc, Peralta, J., writing for the Court. This special civil action for certiorari under Rule 64 in relation to Rule 65 of the Rules of Court assailed the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) en banc Resolution dated August 3, 2010 reinstating a petition to cancel ABC’s registration and directing that a hearing be scheduled.On May 25, 2010 private respondent Melanio Mauricio, Jr. filed with the COMELEC SPP No. 10-013 a petition to cancel the registration and accreditation of ABC Party-List, alleging that ABC was a front for the religious group Children of God International (Ang Dating Daan) and thus disqualified under Section 6(1) of R.A. No. 7941. Mauricio asserted facts concerning ABC’s nominees, organizational control, use of religious group resources in campaigning, and membership composition, and alleged untruthful statements in ABC’s accreditation petition.
The COMELEC Second Division dismissed the petition by Resolution dated June 16, 2010 on procedural grounds—finding the verification defective for failure to comply with the 2004 Rules on Notarial Practice—and on substantial grounds—concluding ABC was not a religious sect and therefore not disqualified. Mauricio filed a Motion for Reconsideration with Motion to Annul Proclamation and Suspend its Effects on June 22, 2010 and later submitted a Supplemental Motion and documentary evidence; ABC filed opposition and urged dismissal, contending COMELEC lacked jurisdiction because ABC had been proclaimed a winner by the National Board of Canvassers (Resolution No. 10-009, May 31, 2010) and its nominee had been invited to the House orientation.
On August 3, 2010 the COMELEC en banc issued a Resolution partially granting Mauricio’s motion, holding that the verification page substantially complied with the notarial rules (because photocopies of a community tax certificate and two ID cards were attached) and that the Second Division had issued its dismissal without affording a hearing, thereby depriving Mauricio of the opportunity to present evidence. The en banc therefore reinstated the petition and directed the Commission Secretary to schedule a hearing, invoking the notice-and-hearing requirement of Section 6 of R.A. No. 7941 and citing Sandoval v. Commission on Elections for procedural due process.
ABC filed this petition for certiorari in the Supreme Court, challenging (1) COMELEC en banc’s jurisdiction to entertain the petition af...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Did the COMELEC en banc have jurisdiction to entertain and reinstate the petition to cancel ABC’s registration after ABC had been proclaimed a winner in the party-list elections?
- Did the COMELEC en banc commit grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction by setting the petition for hearing despite Mauricio’s prior opportunity to present evidence?
- Did the COMELEC en banc commit grave abuse of discretion by failing to recognize that Mauricio’s petition was procedurally defective and unmeritorious on its face?
- Did the COMELEC en banc commit grave abuse of discretion by singling out ABC for h...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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