BACOLOD CITY – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc has dismissed the motion for reconsideration filed by former Mayor Evelio Leonardia on the dismissal of his election protest against Mayor Alfredo Abelardo “Albee” Benitez in relation to the May 2022 national and local elections.
BENITEZ (Glazyl Masculino)
A copy of the Comelec en banc’s seven-page resolution dated April 23, 2024 signed by Chairman George Erwin Garcia was furnished by the mayor’s camp to the media here on Friday, May 24.
The resolution said that “the Commission en banc resolved, as it hereby resolves, to dismiss the Motion for Reconsideration dated September 19, 2022, filed by protestant Evelio R. Leonardia and affirms the order of the Commission’s (Second Division) dated September 7, 2022.”
It stated that “aside from the fact that the petition is insufficient in form and content, the protestant failed to adduce evidence and to justify the need to open and revise all ballots of the 450 clustered precincts.”
“For this reason, the eagerness of protestant to seek revision of all 450 ballots of the clustered precincts in Bacolod City is misplaced. Unquestionably, the grounds recited in the protest will not require a revision of the ballots,” the resolution said.
Leonardia filed the motion seeking to nullify the order of the Comelec (Second Division) dated September 7, 2022, as he averred that “electoral fraud and irregularities are proper grounds for an election protest.”
“Citing jurisprudence, the protestant claimed that he “clearly prayed for a revision of ballots and not merely for an investigation of the vote-buying activities. And third, protestant argued that by applying the rule in statutory construction, “where the law does not distinguish, nor the interpreter must distinguish,” vote-buying is a proper ground for an electoral protest and his general averments fall within the ambit of Section 7 (g), Rule 6 of Comelec Resolution No. 8804,” it stated.
In his election protest, Leonardia assailed the results in all precincts alleging widespread fraud, irregularities, and vote-buying by Benitez and his supporters.
But the Comelec (Second Division) in its September 7, 2022 order said that “first, the petition is in the nature of a complaint for an election offense and should be referred to the Law Department for further investigation for alleged violation of Section 261 (a) on vote-buying, Section 261 (k) on illegal campaigning, and Section 261 (s) on the wearing of uniforms and bearing arms in violation of Section 262 of the Omnibus Election Code.”
The Commission (Second Division) also said in its decision that “the revision and recount of ballots is not crucial in the subject election protest. And that, third, petition was insufficient in form and content for failure to contain a detailed specification of the acts or omissions complained of showing electoral frauds anomalies, or irregularities in the protested precincts pursuant to Section 7 (g) Rule 6 of Comelec Resolution No. 8804. Thus a summary dismissal of the case was warranted based on Section 9 (b) Rule 6 of Comelec Resolution No. 8804.”
In its April 23, 2024 resolution, “the Commission en banc resolves to deny the Motion for Reconsideration pursuant to Section 1, Rule 19 of the Comelec Rules of Procedures. We emphasize that protestant neither raised grounds nor presented new matters or issues that would merit the overruling of the order of the Commission (Second Division).”
In the May 2022 polls, Benitez garnered 171,893 votes against 107,447 votes of Leonardia, or a margin of 64,446 votes.
In a statement, Benitez’s spokesperson, Caesar Distrito, said that Benitez has once again prevailed in the latest decision of the Comelec.
Distrito said that the decision of the Comelec is a clear manifestation that their election protests were purely harassment and no legal and factual basis at all.
He said that the denial of the motion will now put to rest any doubts to the victory of Benitez that were cast by the Leonardia camp.
“Mayor Albee won clearly and convincingly with a margin of 64,446 votes. The people had spoken, and so the Comelec,” he added.