Case Digest (G.R. No. 258449)
Facts:
Juan Juan Olila Ollesca v. Commission on Elections, G.R. No. 258449, July 30, 2024, Supreme Court En Banc, Leonen, SAJ., writing for the Court.
Petitioner Juan Juan Olila Ollesca filed his Certificate of Candidacy (COC) for President on October 7, 2021, declaring himself an independent and an entrepreneur. On October 21, 2021, the Commission on Elections Law Department motu proprio filed a petition under Rule 24 to declare Ollesca a nuisance candidate and to deny due course or cancel his COC, alleging that he was virtually unknown outside his locality, lacked the financial capacity to mount a nationwide campaign, and thus had no bona fide intention to run.
The COMELEC Second Division issued an order directing Ollesca to file an answer; he did so on November 2, 2021. On December 13, 2021, the COMELEC Second Division granted the Law Department’s petition, declared Ollesca a nuisance candidate, and denied due course/cancelled his COC. Ollesca received the Resolution on December 15, 2021, and filed a Motion for Reconsideration via e‑mail on December 20, 2021 at 5:00 p.m.; he paid assessed fees on December 21, 2021 and submitted an official receipt that same day.
On January 3, 2022, the COMELEC En Banc denied the Motion for Reconsideration as filed beyond the five‑day reglementary period and for failure to timely pay the fees. Ollesca then filed a Petition for Certiorari under Rule 65 of the Rules of Court seeking review of the December 13, 2021 Resolution and the January 3, 2022 Order; his application for a temporary restraining order/preliminary injunction was denied on February 15, 2022. The parties litigated issues of timeliness of the Motion f...(Pro-only)
Issues:
- Was petitioner’s Motion for Reconsideration timely filed?
- Did the Commission on Elections commit grave abuse of discretion in declaring petitioner a nuisance candidate under Section 69 of the Omnibus El...(Pro-only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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