By Rey Panaligan The Supreme Court (SC) has affirmed its order that allowed Edgardo A. Tallado to run for Camarines Norte governor, a post he eventually won in the last May elections. Supreme Court (SC) (MANILA BULLETIN) In its press statement, the SC’s public information office (PIO) said the decision which granted Tallado’s petition against his disqualification by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) was written by Chief Justice Lucas P. Bersamin. The PIO said the ruling was arrived at in an 8-6 vote during the SC’s full court deliberation last Tuesday, September 10. A copy of the decision was not immediately available. The PIO said those who concurred with Bersamin were Associate Justices Diosdado M. Peralta, Alexander G. Gesmundo, Andres B. Reyes, Jr., Jose C. Reyes, Jr., Amy C. Lazaro-Javier, Henry Jean Paul B. Inting, and Rodil V. Zalameda. It said the dissent was written by Associate Justice Francis H. Jardeleza. Senior Associate Justice Antonio T. Carpio and Associate Justices Estela M. Perlas-Bernabe, Marvic M.V.F. Leonen, Alfredo Benjamin S. Caguioa, and Rosmari D. Carandang joined the dissent. When Tallado was disqualified by the Comelec which cancelled his certificate of candidacy, he elevated the issue to the SC which issued a status quo ante order (SQAO) that enabled him to run for governor last May. Published reports showed that the complaint against Tallado was filed by Norberto Villamin and Senandro Jalgalado who claimed the governor’s candidacy last May would be his fourth term. In disqualifying Tallado, the same reports stated that two rulings of the Office of the Ombudsman (OMB) imposed on Tallado the penalty of dismissal from service which did not attain finality because he availed himself of the remedy of appeal. The other OMB ruling on Tallado’s dismissal from the service was modified to a mere suspension. The SC PIO said details on the decision would be issued once a copy is available.