Title
Bello vs. Commission on Elections
Case
G.R. No. 191998
Decision Date
Dec 7, 2010
Petitioners sought to disqualify Mikey Arroyo as AGPP's party-list nominee, arguing he didn't represent marginalized sectors. SC dismissed petitions, ruling HRET has jurisdiction post-proclamation.
commission on elections
lack of jurisdiction
prematurity

Case Summary (G.R. No. 191998)

Factual Background

AGPP filed its Manifestation of Intent to participate in the May 10, 2010 elections and later submitted its Certificate of Nomination and Certificates of Acceptance on March 23, 2010. COMELEC Resolution No. 8807 prescribed procedures for petitions to disqualify party-list nominees and required documentary proof that nominees belong to the marginalized and underrepresented sectors the party purported to represent. Under Resolution No. 8646, the documentary submissions required by Resolution No. 8807 were to be filed by March 29, 2010. AGPP did not submit the documentary evidence by the date on which petitioners inquired.

Initial Administrative Petitions

On March 25, 2010, petitioners Liza L. Maza, Saturnino C. Ocampo, and Bayan Muna Party-List represented by Teodoro Casino filed a petition for disqualification against Arroyo under COMELEC rules and Republic Act No. 7941, contending that Arroyo did not belong to the marginalized sector AGPP claimed to represent and that his incumbency and positions in the House of Representatives rendered him unfit as a party-list nominee. Arroyo answered that the COMELEC lacked jurisdiction over certain qualification issues and that he had been a bona fide member of AGPP for the requisite period.

Additional Petitions and Requests

On March 30, 2010, Bayan Muna Party-List (represented by Neri Colmenares) filed another disqualification petition reiterating that Arroyo was not a member of the marginalized sector, was not a bona fide member ninety days before the election, and that AGPP lacked authority to nominate him. On April 6 and April 7, 2010, petitioners Walden F. Bello and Loretta Ann P. Rosales wrote to the COMELEC Law Department requesting copies of AGPP’s documentary submissions and urging the Commission to act motu proprio to disqualify AGPP nominees for failure to comply with Resolution No. 8807; the Law Department replied that AGPP had not submitted the required documents and thereafter did not respond to follow-up letters.

COMELEC Adjudication

The COMELEC Second Division, in a May 7, 2010 joint resolution, dismissed the petitions for disqualification against Arroyo, finding that Section 9 of RA 7941 required only that a nominee be a bona fide member of the party for at least ninety days prior to the election and that Arroyo satisfied that criterion by having become a member on November 20, 2009 and by actively participating in AGPP activities. The COMELEC en banc, in a consolidated resolution on July 19, 2010, refused reconsideration and held that the statutory qualifications under RA 7941 did not include the additional sectoral-membership requirement imposed by Resolution No. 8807, declaring Section 6 of Resolution No. 8807 ultra vires to the extent that it required nominees to belong to the marginalized sector they represented.

Subsequent Events and Parallel Remedies

AGPP secured enough votes in the May 10, 2010 elections to obtain one seat, and the COMELEC National Board of Canvassers proclaimed AGPP a winner. Arroyo was proclaimed and took his oath of office as AGPP’s representative on July 21, 2010, and his name was entered in the Roll of Members of the House of Representatives. Two separate petitions for quo warranto were thereafter filed with the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET) challenging Arroyo’s eligibility; the HRET issued summonses on September 7, 2010.

The Petitions to the Supreme Court

On May 7, 2010, Walden F. Bello and Loretta Ann P. Rosales filed a petition for mandamus and prohibition with application for temporary restraining order and preliminary injunction in G.R. No. 191998 seeking to compel the COMELEC to motu proprio disqualify AGPP nominees for noncompliance with Resolution No. 8807 and to enjoin the COMELEC from processing AGPP’s participation in the elections. On July 23 and 29, 2010, the other petitioners filed two certiorari petitions, docketed as G.R. Nos. 192769 and 192832, seeking annulment of the COMELEC Second Division’s May 7, 2010 resolution and the COMELEC en banc’s July 19, 2010 consolidated resolution dismissing the disqualification petitions against Arroyo.

Issues Presented

The consolidated petitions presented core questions: whether a writ of mandamus lay to compel the COMELEC to disqualify AGPP nominees motu proprio or to cancel AGPP’s registration; whether the COMELEC could be enjoined from giving due course to AGPP’s participation, canvassing its votes, and proclaiming it a winner; and whether the HRET had exclusive jurisdiction over disputes concerning Arroyo’s qualifications after his proclamation and assumption of office.

Petitioners’ Arguments

The mandamus petitioners contended that the COMELEC committed grave abuse of discretion by failing to motu proprio disqualify AGPP nominees for noncompliance with Resolution No. 8807 and by giving AGPP due course in the May 10, 2010 elections. The certiorari petitioners argued that the COMELEC en banc gravely abused its discretion in refusing to disqualify Arroyo because he did not belong to the marginalized sector, was not a bona fide AGPP member for at least ninety days preceding the election, would not be able to contribute legislatively to the sector, and that his nomination violated AGPP’s continuing undertaking underlying its registration.

Respondents’ Arguments

Arroyo argued that upon proclamation and assumption of office his qualifications were within the exclusive original jurisdiction of the HRET, and that the Supreme Court lacked jurisdiction. The COMELEC, through the Office of the Solicitor General, likewise urged dismissal for lack of jurisdiction in view of Arroyo’s proclamation and assumption of office. The OSG did not comment on the G.R. No. 191998 petition despite notice.

The Court’s Ruling

The Court dismissed all petitions. It held that the mandamus petition in G.R. No. 191998 was improperly filed and premature because the petitioners had failed to avail themselves of the plain, speedy and adequate administrative remedies provided under COMELEC Resolution No. 8807 and Section 6 of RA 7941, which authorized either a petition for disqualification to be filed within the periods specified or a verified complaint for cancellation of registration. The Court further held that the prohibition relief sought was moot after AGPP’s participation in the election, proclamation, and Arroyo’s assumption of office. The certiorari petitions in G.R. Nos. 192769 and 192832 were dismissed for lack of jurisdiction because, following proclamation and oath, the qualifications of a party-list representative fall within the exclusive original jurisdiction of the HRET pursuant to Section 17, Article VI and existing precedents.

Legal Basis and Reasoning

The Court applied Rule 65 of the Rules of Court for mandamus and required compliance with Section 3 of that Rule, noting that mandamus issues only where no other plain, speedy and adequate remedy exists. The Court identified the administrative remedies under Resolution No. 8807 (Sections 2 and 4) and Section 6 o

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