Case Digest (G.R. No. L-2051)
Facts:
Bernardo Torres, Protestant and Appellant, vs. Mamerto S. Ribo and Alejandro Balderian, Respondents and Appellees, G.R. No. L-2051, May 21, 1948, the Supreme Court, Tuason, J., writing for the Court.In the November 11, 1947 general elections for provincial governor of Leyte, Bernardo Torres and Mamerto S. Ribo (then provincial governor) were opposing candidates. Because Ribo and two provincial board members were themselves candidates, they were disqualified from serving on the provincial board of canvassers under Section 158 of the Revised Election Code; accordingly, under Section 159 the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), by telegram dated November 20 and received November 21 in Tacloban, appointed the division superintendent of schools, the district engineer, and the district health officer as substitute members, advising they might assume office upon receipt of their appointments.
Two of the appointed officers (the division superintendent and the district engineer) were absent from Tacloban and did not return until November 24. On November 22 the provincial treasurer (F. Martinez) as chairman, the provincial fiscal (Gregorio Abogado), Vicente Tizon (assistant civil engineer), Evaristo Pascual (chief clerk in the division superintendent’s office), and W. Enage (acting district health officer) met, canvassed the returns (relying in part on municipal treasurers’ certified statements where official returns were missing), and proclaimed Ribo Governor-elect. Tizon and Pascual sat “representing” the absent appointees. On November 24 the full complement arrived, the provincial board again canvassed the votes and proclaimed Ribo elected.
Torres filed a motion of protest for provincial governor, which the Court of First Instance of Leyte dismissed as filed out of time; the trial court computed the period for filing from the November 22 canvass. Earlier, Judge Victoriano ruled that Tizon and Pascual were not lawful members; on reconsideration Judge Edmundo Piccio reversed, treating assistant offi...(Subscriber-Only)
Issues:
- Was the protest filed out of time such that the trial court correctly computed its filing period from November 22, 1947?
- Were Vicente Tizon and Evaristo Pascual lawful members of the provincial board of canvassers on November 22, 1947, so that their participation validated the canvass and proclamation of Mamerto S. Ribo?
- Was the canvass and proclamation conducted on November 22, 1947 lawful despite missing official election returns and the board’s use of m...(Subscriber-Only)
Ruling:
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Ratio:
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Doctrine:
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