Facts:

The case in question is Julasiri M. Anni and Hadji Hassan Tawasil vs. Santanina Rasul, Commission on Elections, and the Provincial Board of Canvassers of Sulu, filed under G.R. No. L-34904, with a decision rendered on August 30, 1971. The controversy arose from the provincial and municipal elections held on November 8, 1971, followed by a special election in Luuk on November 22, 1971. The electoral dispute centers on the results for three provincial board members in Sulu, where initially only the governor was proclaimed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

The top candidates based on unofficial tallies were Julkipli Anni (40,923 votes), Julasiri Anni (37,009 votes), Hadji Hassan Tawasil (27,714 votes), and Santanina Rasul (26,439 votes). After the elections, on November 26, 1971, Rasul filed a petition with Comelec, alleging massive vote tampering and requesting the suspension of the proclamation of the winning candidates. Comelec's interim resolutions permitted the ca

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Facts:

Background of the Elections

• The provincial and municipal elections in Sulu were held on November 8, 1971, with a special election in Luuk on November 22, 1971.
• The disputed election concerned the selection of three members of the provincial board, while the governor had already been proclaimed, and the incumbent vice-governor and board members from the 1967 elections remained in office.
• The unofficial tally for the five front-running candidates was as follows:

- Julkipli Anni: 40,923 votes (with a plurality of 14,484 votes) - Julasiri Anni: 37,009 votes (with a plurality of 10,570 votes) - Hassan Tawasil: 27,714 votes (with a plurality of 1,275 votes) - Santanina Rasul: 26,439 votes - Muss Izquierdo: Not initially among the top four, but later affecting the dynamics depending on the examination of returns

Pre-Proclamation Controversies and Motions

• On November 26, 1971, respondent Rasul filed an urgent petition (Case No. C-294) with the Comelec to suspend the proclamation based on her objection to the inclusion of disputed returns from five municipalities, arguing that tampered or spurious returns materially altered the results in a narrow margin against her.
• Simultaneously, Comelec Resolution No. 78 directed:

- The canvassing board to continue with the canvass. - All questions regarding the returns be raised during the canvassing. - The candidates be given a reasonable period to appeal the board’s rulings while halting any proclamation until the canvass was concluded and appeals consolidated. - An elevated review of the contested returns by the canvassing board. - The order for election registrars to forward the precinct books of voters for examination by experts.

Subsequent Developments in the Dispute

• On the same December 15, 1971, petitioners on Rasul’s ticket (including candidate Salih Ututalum and others) filed a separate petition (Case No. C-339) alleging massive substitution and fabrication of returns in 17 municipalities.
• At the joint hearing on January 12, 1972, Comelec:

- Excluded six returns from Tapul (totaling 730 votes) due to statistical improbability. - Ordered the examination of the precinct books of eighteen precincts in Siasi and thirteen in Tapul for fingerprint and handwriting analysis. - It rejected the belated motion for the 75 precincts on the basis that these precincts had not been questioned during the canvass and that the petitioners’ new contention was introduced only after respondent Rasul had rested her case. - It held proceedings in abeyance pending the resolution of Case No. C-339, where Rasul was impleaded as respondent. - Julkipli Anni: 36,930 votes - Julasiri Anni: 33,162 votes - Santanina Rasul: 26,406 votes - Hassan Tawasil: 24,244 votes - Muss Izquierdo: 23,554 votes - It decreed the reconvening of the provincial canvassing board to proclaim Julkipli Anni and Santanina Rasul as winners for the two positions whose victory was beyond dispute, pending further examination in the remaining 164 precincts contested in Case No. C-339.

Essence of the Dispute

• The petition challenged the twin resolutions of Comelec (RR-1161 and related orders) to set aside the disputed returns and to effect the proclamation of candidates Julkipli Anni and Santanina Rasul despite the pending examination of additional 164 precincts.
• Few principal matters emerged regarding whether the pending examination could alter the outcome for the candidates and the propriety of allowing belated objections not raised before the canvassing board.

Issue:

Abuse of Discretion in the Proclamation Process

• Whether Comelec committed grave abuse of discretion in authorizing the proclamation of Julkipli Anni and Santanina Rasul as winners of two board member positions before fully resolving the contest of the 164 pending precincts.
• Whether the preliminary vote adjustments sufficiently ensured that their election was decisive, rendering the pending examinations negligible in altering the outcome.

Admission of Belated Motions for Additional Examination

• Whether it was procedurally proper for petitioners to seek, after respondent Rasul had rested her case, a motion for the examination of 75 additional precincts where disputed returns were claimed to be spurious.
• Whether Comelec erred in denying the belated motion when such requests were not originally raised during the canvassing.

Ruling:

• (Subscriber-Only)

Ratio:

• (Subscriber-Only)

Doctrine:

• (Subscriber-Only)