MANILA, Philippines - The party-list group 1-United Transport Koalisyon (1-UTAK) has questioned before the Supreme Court (SC) the action of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) canceling its accreditation.
Rep. Zeny Manaran of 1-Utak told reporters during the weekly Rembrandt news forum it was strange that the Comelec had approved the application for accreditation of Piston, Pinagkaisahang Samahan ng mga Tsuper at Operators Nationwide and disqualified 1-UTAK.
Piston, like 1-UTAK, represents drivers and operators, she added. Maranan said the Comelec’s conclusion that operators and drivers have conflicting interests is not based on evidence and the reality on the ground.
“Comelec did not even bother to give us a chance to refute their thinking on this,” she said.
In its petition, 1-UTAK said its accreditation as a party-list group has long been resolved in a 2007 Comelec order.
Maranan said the Comelec flip-flopped in disqualifying 1-UTAK, whose accreditation was approved over five years ago.
“Nothing has changed since then and this decision has become final and executory. It can no longer be canceled or revoked pursuant to the principle of immutability of decisions.”
Rep. Mikey Arroyo’s Ang Galing Pinoy party-list group has asked the SC to stop the Comelec from delisting it from the 2013 polls.
Through lawyer Raul Lambino, Ang Galing said the Comelec action was “exercised in an arbitrary and despotic manner by reason of passion and hostility.”
“If the petitioner no longer enjoys the confidence of the sector that it represents, then let the people – not the Comelec – say so through the ballot,” read the petition.
Ang Galing said Comelec did not give it a chance to prove its qualification as provided under Republic Act 7941, the Party-list System Act.
“Contrary to the Comelec’s twisted view, all of AG’s six nominees actually belong to the marginalized and underrepresented sectors,” read the petition.
Ang Galing said the poll body gravely abused its discretion and acted without jurisdiction “when it concluded that AG does not intend to represent any marginalized or underrepresented sector based on facts and evidence already resolved in 2007.”
“The first nominee, Charlie Chua, is a lawyer and a businessman,” read the petition.
“The second nominee is Eder Dizon, a physician. Jerold Dominick David, who is a businessman and an employee, is the third nominee. The fourth nominee, Ryan Caladiao, is also an employee. Its fifth nominee, Alan Trinidad, is a basketball coach and an employee. Its last nominee, Bernardo Corella, Jr., is its consultant in the House of Representatives.”
The SC is set to tackle Ang Galing’s petition in its last full-court session today before going on a month-long holiday break.
The status quo ante order that the SC issued last Nov. 13 now covers a total of 33 disqualified party-list groups.
New party-list group
A lawyer advocating the rights of the urban poor will lead the nominees of a new party-list group that the Comelec has allowed to join the 2013 elections.
First nominee Maria Angela Esquivel, an alumna of the University of Santo Tomas Faculty of Civil Law, vowed to defend the rights of the urban poor during the public launch of party-list Ugnayan ng Maralita Laban sa Kahirapan (Umalab Ka!) in Quezon City yesterday.
“Our group is the answer to the challenge of implementing reforms that will solve the problems of the urban poor,” she said.
Esquivel said their legislative agenda will not only help the poor in Metro Manila, but also those in the provinces.
“It’s time that the Congress pave the way for genuine policy reforms responsive to the interests of the poor and the marginalized,” she said.
Esquivel said the accreditation given to Umalab Ka! shows the competence of its legislative agenda.
It will include the enactment of a magna carta for the informal sector, and the amendment of the Local Government Code and the Urban Development and Housing Act, she added.
Esquivel said the administration needs to introduce more reforms, especially those for the urban poor.
“Before thinking about issues such as the reproductive health bill and the territorial dispute with China, the most important concern of the poor is whether or not they will have food for the day,” she said.
Other nominees of Umalab Ka! are lawyer Arnold Castro, and urban poor leaders Edwin Segaya, Noel Cano and Nicanor Salameda Jr. – Perseus Echeminada, Janvic Mateo