Coalition 349 petitions delisting of bogus groups

The Coalition 349 has filed a petition to the COMELEC for the delisting and withdrawal of accreditation for participation in the party-list election of bogus marginalized groups seeking entry into Congress through Republic Act 7941.

"Only abut 10 percent of the party-list groups accredited by the Comelec fall within the parameter of marginalized and under-represented sectors as defined by the provisions of the 1987 Constitution and R.A. 7941, its enabling law," Vic del Fierro said shortly after the group Coalition 349 filed its petition disqualifying several entities participating in the May 14 party-list elections.

Among the groups singled out in the petition of the Coalition 349 are Chamber of Real Estate & Builders Association, Inc. (CREBA); Go-Go Philippines Movement; Mamamayan Ayaw sa Droga (MAD); Citizens Drug Watch Foundation, Inc. (DRUG WATCH); National Federation of Sugar Planters (NFSP); Philippine Association of Detective and Protective Agency Operators, Inc. (PADPAO); Association of Builders Consultants and Designers, Inc. (ABCD); Security Untied League on Nationwide Guards, Inc. (SULONG); Citizens Movement for Justice, Economy, Environment, And Peace (JEEP); Sports and Health Advancement Foundation (SHAF) Inc.; Port Users Confederation (PUC); The True Marcos Loyalists Association of the Philippines; Organized Support for the Movement to Enhance the National Agenda (OSMENA); Philippine Medical Association (PMA); Philippine Dental Association of the Philippines (PDA); and the Asosasyon para sa Kaunlaran ng Industriya ng Aklat (AKLAT).

"These are bogus marginalized groups but we do hope that by their claim, the individuals behind these groups become authentic insignificant, powerless and under-privileged entities as they claim in their party-list registration," del Fierro said.

According to the Coalition 349, the participation of these groups makes a mockery of the noble intention behind the Party-List Law, which seeks to democratize authentic representations of marginalized sectors in Congress.