Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto on Thursday, Feb. 19, filed a complaint before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) against contractor and his former rival in the 2025 mayoral race, Sarah Discaya, over alleged campaign overspending and perjury in connection with the 2025 elections.

Sotto, together with his lawyer, the Macalintal Law Office, led by election lawyer Romulo Macalintal, filed the complaint before the Comelec Political Finance and Affairs Department (PFAD) in Intramuros, Manila.

In his Complaint-Affidavit, Sotto claimed that Discaya violated Section 100 of the Omnibus Election Code for campaign expenses in excess of the amount authorized by law and for the untruthful statements she made in her Statement of Contributions and Expenses (SOCE) in connection with the May 2025 elections.

The campaign period for the May 2025 elections ran from March 28 to May 10. Candidates with political parties were allowed to spend P3 per registered voter, which means with 463,885 voters in Pasig City, Discaya could only spend up to P1,391,655.

However, Sotto said that in Discaya's SOCE, she reported a total expense of P895,000 only for "stationery, printing, and distribution of printed materials relative to her candidacy."

“Kapag binasa n'yo po yung SOCE niya, nasa humigit-kumulang P800,000 lang ang kaniyang declared expenditures… nakita n'yo naman lahat kung ano yung ginawa nila nung campaign. Kayo na po ang maghusga kung ‘yun lang talaga ang ginastos nila (If you read her SOCE, she only declared around P800,000 in expenditures… and everyone saw what they actually did during the campaign. You be the judge if that was really all they spent),” Sotto said during a media interview.

In Sotto's complaint, aside from the said expenses, Discaya made no declaration as to the digital advertisement purportedly paid by her or contributed to her, as well as her outdoor political advertisements or billboards.

Sotto also submitted screenshots of Discaya's digital advertisement, which purportedly showed that it was "donated by the Chicco Francisco family,” which Discaya did not include in her SOCE.

Another digital advertisement, which heavily circulated during the campaign period, showed that it was "paid by Cezarah Rowena C. Discaya,” yet he said it was also not reported in Discaya's SOCE.

The mayor also claimed that Discaya "did not state in her SOCE any amount-whether as contribution or expense for her publicized meetings, rallies, or caucuses, as well as travel expenses, which she certainly incurred in going to and from said gatherings.”

Sotto alleged further that the allowable expenses of candidates cover contributions or donations on the candidate's behalf and that the Comelec is empowered under Section 100 of the Omnibus Election Code to "assess an expense based on prevailing rates in the locality and include such assessed amount in the total expenses incurred by the candidate."

"Particularly, in this case, Discaya's political advertisements proliferated during the months and days leading to the 2025 elections, hence, pursuant to its mandate, the Comelec may determine and assess such advertising expenses and to ascertain the same from its own records,” Sotto said.

“If the value or cost of Discaya's digital and outdoor political advertisements will be determined after proper proceedings or upon an evaluation of the records of the Comelec, then a definitive finding may be had not only on the extent of Discaya's expenses in the 2025 elections but also on whether she has spent in excess of the maximum allowable contributions and expenditures,” Sotto added.

"In view of said glaring deficiencies in Discaya's SOCE, it is clear that she made a material untruthful statement in her SOCE, a document which she executed under oath and submitted to the Comelec. As such, she may be held criminally liable for the crime of perjury as provided under Article 183 of the Revised Penal Code,” he continued.

Earlier, Sotto also filed a Complaint-Affidavit for perjury for alleged falsity in Discaya's declarations in her Certificate of Candidacy (CoC).

He questioned Discaya's declaration of her eligibility for the Office of Mayor of Pasig City while still asserting her British citizenship through the use of her British passport after she filed her CoC.

Meanwhile, Sotto reminded aspiring candidates for future elections that this is not just about Discaya, but about ensuring everyone follows the law.

“Sa akin po, hindi na lang ito tungkol kay Discaya lamang o sa team nila, para sa akin ito po ay statement na sa lungsod ng Pasig, dapat sumunod tayo sa batas (For me, this is no longer just about Discaya or her team. This is a statement that in Pasig City, we must all follow the law),” he said.

“Darating ang barangay elections ngayong taon. Mensahe ‘to sa mga nagnanais maging kapitan, kagawad… sumunod kayo. Ganoon din pagdating ng 2028. Kahit sino p'wedeng tumakbo basta qualified pero sumunod kayo sa batas at kung hindi, gagawin namin ang bahagi namin para managit kayo (The barangay elections are coming this year. This is a message to those aspiring to be captains or councilors—follow the rules. The same applies in 2028. Anyone can run as long as they are qualified, but you must follow the law. If not, we will do our part to hold you accountable),” Sotto added.