First hearing today on FPJ case

Witnesses in the first, and possibly only, hearing on the disqualification case against presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr. are expected to appear at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Intramuros, Manila today.

Lawyer Victorino Fornier said summonses have been sent to the civil registrar of Manila and the director of the National Archives. At least one of them is expected to attend the 10 a.m. hearing at the Comelec session hall.

Fornier said the two will testify to the authenticity of the documents he presented to support his petition seeking to disqualify Poe on the grounds that Poe is not a natural-born Filipino citizen and is thus prohibited by the Constitution from seeking the presidency in the May 10 elections.

Fornier filed a petition to disqualify Poe on the grounds that Poe’s father, Ronald Allan Poe Sr., was a Spanish citizen.

Fornier also alleged that the elder Poe married a certain Paulita Gomez, who allegedly filed bigamy and concubinage charges against the elder Poe.

Fornier’s documents included a copy of a 1936 marriage contract between the elder Poe and Gomez.

He said that Ronald Allan’s marriage to American citizen Bessie Kelly was bigamous, having come after his marriage to Gomez. Thus, Poe, the son of Ronald Allan and Kelly, is illegitimate, he said.

Being an illegitimate child, the movie actor should follow the citizenship of his mother, the lawyer said.

Even if he followed the citizenship of his father, there is no showing that Poe Sr. was a Filipino citizen, he added.

Poe’s lawyers led by former justice secretary Estelito Mendoza told a news conference last Friday that there was no way the marriage contract can be authentic since the place where it was supposed to have been obtained was totally destroyed during World War II.

Poe’s lawyers countered that Gomez does not exist. They presented their own set of documents, including Ronald Allan’s membership in the United States Army Forces in the Far East (USAFFE) and land titles.

Fornier however stood his ground, saying, "those (opposition) papers are not conclusive as to Poe’s citizenship and, even if they were real, the question is what was (Poe’s) citizenship at the time he was born?"

He said the testimonies of witnesses, on the other hand, effectively refute allegations by the Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP), of which Poe is the standard-bearer, that his documents are fake.

"Just because there are no hard copies does not mean there are no records," Fornier said. "Some of these documents are (on) microfilm because they are already too brittle to handle and our witnesses will prove that."

Fornier also disputed claims of Poe’s lawyers that the Convento de Santo Domingo was destroyed during the liberation of Manila in 1945.

Prior to its destruction, the Convento de Santo Domingo was located in Intramuros and it was supposedly the repository of the Poe-Gomez marriage certificate.

He said that while the convent was burned to the ground, a copy of the Poe-Gomez marriage certificate was filed among government records when Gomez sued Poe for bigamy and concubinage.

There will be only one hearing on the matter, as both parties are expected to submit their memoranda before the case is submitted for resolution.

"It will not take the Comelec very long to decide the case," Fornier said. "I do not want this to drag on. I want this done right because I know this case will reach the Supreme Court."

Who to blame?

Sen. Vicente Sotto III is expected to blame the camp of President Arroyo today on the questions that have been raised about Poe’s citizenship.

Sotto, who has been acting as Poe’s unofficial spokesman, is scheduled to deliver a privileged speech this afternoon on Poe’s citizenship.

He and Sen. Edgardo Angara, who is also supporting Poe’s quest for the presidency in the May elections, have been blaming the Arroyo administration for the disqualification case filed against Poe by Fornier before the Comelec.

Angara said Friday that the Fornier complaint and two other cases for perjury and falsification of public documents filed by other lawyers before the Manila prosecutor’s office are part of the administration’s "squid tactics to harass (Poe)."

"The camp of Mrs. Arroyo has resorted to these tactics out of desperation, because (Poe) is way ahead of the President," he said.

Mrs. Arroyo, who inherited over three years of the term of ousted President Joseph Estrada, is seeking a full six-year term in the May polls.

Sotto has claimed that their candidate is a natural-born Filipino and that they would submit documents to the Comelec to prove this.

He said Fornier’s documents were fabricated.

So far, Poe has not said a word about the issue.

Sotto, on the other hand, claimed that Gomez was a non-existent person.

The President’s official stand on the issue is that her administration would help Poe get the necessary documents to prove he is a natural-born Filipino.

Making K-4 look good

Meanwhile, lawmakers from the ruling Lakas-Christian Muslim Democrats (Lakas-CMD) said in a statement that the failure of Poe and presidential candidate Sen. Panfilo Lacson to unite reflects their inability to promote unification and solidarity.

Antique Rep. Exequiel Javier said that "granting that Poe and Lacson may unite before the polls, their bitter relationship will carry because both camps have different agendas to promote."

The disunity in the ranks of the opposition, he said, has wrecked the image of the opposition and enhanced the image of the administration Koalisyon ng Katapatan at Karanasan sa Kinabukasan (K-4).

Bulacan Rep. Wilfrido Villarama said Poe’s failure to unite the opposition clearly shows he is unacceptable to many members of the opposition.

"In spite of his showing in poll surveys, many in the opposition doubt (Poe’s) capability to lead and unify the country. His lack of credentials is being whispered in private gatherings," Villarama said.

"Businessmen would speak against a Poe presidency, if only they (were) not scared of retaliations," he added.

Earlier, Makati City Rep. Agapito Aquino announced that moves to unify the two clashing wings of the opposition Laban ng Demokratikong Pilipino (LDP) failed.

Aquino’s segment of the LDP is backing Lacson’s presidential Bid, while Angara’s wing backs Poe. Angara is the LDP president, while Aquino is secretary-general.

The Aquino and Angara camps were supposed to meet Friday, but the meeting was canceled. Aquino attributed the breakdown in the talks to Angara’s move asking the Supreme Court to nullify the Comelec ruling declaring both LDP factions legitimate.