Comelec disqualifies 152 party lists for 2010 electionsParty list groups protest “arbitrary” disqualification by Pauline Gidget Estella
(This report was published in print in issue 17 of the Philippine Collegian on 1 December 2009.)The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has disqualified 152 out of 256 party list groups that applied for accreditation in the 2010 elections, drawing protests from organizations which called the Comelec decision “illegal and unreasonable.”
After the August 17 deadline of filing for party list accreditation, Comelec rejected the majority of party list groups because of their failure to participate or obtain at least two percent of the votes cast under the party-list system in the last two elections, such as Migrante Sectoral Party of Overseas Filipinos and their Families (Migrante).
Comelec also rejected the petitions for accreditation filed by Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT Teachers) and Confederation for Unity, Recognition and Advancement of Government Employees (Courage) for “lack of national constituency.” Meanwhile, Ang Ladlad (Ladlad), a sectoral group aiming to represent lesbians, gays, bisexuals and transgenders, was disqualified based on “moral grounds.”
Accreditation is a requirement for the filing of the “intent to participate,” or registration, in the 2010 elections.
Comelec disqualified party list groups which genuinely represent the marginalized but allowed fraud party list groups to register, said Migrante Chairperson Connie Bragas-Regalado.
Bantay, for instance, is just a “pseudo-party list led by retired Maj. Gen. Jovito Palparan, [who is] known for his bloody [record on] human rights” and loyalty to the Arroyo administration, said Kabataan Party list Rep. Raymond Palatino. Bantay, which won one seat in Congress during the 2007 elections, claims to represent members of the Civilian Armed Forces Geographical Unit and security guards.
“The party list system has been used by [Arroyo] to maintain its power in Congress [through groups that are] administration-backed and bereft of marginalized constituencies,” leading to slimmer chances for the true representatives of many sectors, she added.
In 2007, 93 party list groups participated in the elections, but only 16 were elected, filling a total of 21 seats. A total of 54 seats were allotted for party list representatives, based on a Supreme Court (SC) order.
The Comelec’s desperate scheme to reduce the numbers of participating partylist groups should not be done at the expense of [representing] the marginalized sector,” said Migrante International Chairperson Garry Martinez.
Disenfranchised
The disqualification of Courage and ACT Teachers “disenfranchised many state employees and educators, [denying them] their right to be represented in Congress,” said Courage National President Ferdinand Gaite.
Comelec did not accredit ACT Teachers and Courage because the constituency of the groups do not extend to the majority of the country’s regions, according to the poll body’s resolution.
But the decision of Comelec is based on erroneous supporting data, Gaite said, noting that the poll body mistakenly referred to Courage as “Kalinga” when it ordered its offices to verify the party’s existence.
ACT, meanwhile, is a 15,000-strong organization with members and offices nationwide, said ACT President Antonio Tinio. According to the Comelec, an organization has nationwide constituency if it has members in the majority of cities and provinces.
Both ACT Teachers and Courage will file an appeal this week.
Meanwhile, Ladlad was also disqualified due to lack of national constituency in the 2007 elections. For the 2010 elections, however, Comelec ruled that Ladlad had a national base, and still disqualified the group for “offending religious beliefs.”
Human rights violation
Ladlad was denied accreditation for “advocating immoral doctrines, [and exposing] the youth to an environment that does not conform to the teachings of faith,” the Comelec said in its resolution.
The Comelec “crossed the constitutional separation of the church and the state” when it used the Bible and the Koran to justify the disqualification of a party list, said Ladlad President Danton Remoto.
The Comelec’s decision is a “violation of human rights,” said Commission on Human Rights Chair Leila de Lima in a statement.
“There is no basis in law to deny the registration of the party on the grounds of homosexuality, [or] homosexuality equated with immorality. To make assertions based on their homosexuality is patently discriminatory,” said de Lima.
Ladlad will file a motion for reconsideration, which they will elevate to the SC if met with another rejection from the Comelec, said Remoto.
The Comelec’s “absurd” decisions have killed the right to representation of marginalized sectors in the legislative branch of the government, Remoto added.
Erroneous decision
In Migrante’s case, the Comelec resolution means that “more than 10 million overseas Filipino workers and their families will be denied genuine sectoral representation in the 2010 elections,” said Atty. Julius Matibag, Migrante legal counsel.
After Migrante was disqualified in August, the group filed an appeal for reconsideration, which the Comelec rejected. Migrante’s failure to seek accreditation during the 2007 elections after losing in the 2004 elections automatically means it lost in the last two elections, according to the poll body.
Migrante already filed a petition for a temporary restraining order in the SC on November 20, which would prevent the Comelec from implementing its resolution and allow the group to register for the 2010 elections.
The party list system aims to widen the representation of various sectors of the society in Congress, said Regalado. The Comelec, however, “does not seem to respect the wisdom of the party list system and democracy,” she added.■
