Romeo Jalosjos Jr., the president and chief executive officer (CEO) of the Television and Production Exponents Inc. (TAPE), said he will file a motion for reconsideration to reverse the ruling of the Supreme Court on his reelection as representative of the first district of Zamboanga del Norte.
Romeo Jalosjos Jr.
“We will file an MR [motion for reconsideration] because there are a lot of questions that have yet to be answered and I hope masagot din ito ng Supreme Court,” said Jalosjos.
One of the points to be raised in the motion is the constitutionality of the Supreme Court’s decision, especially on the assumption of office of a congressman, Jalosjos added.
According to the Supreme Court Public Information Office (SC PIO), the Supreme Court, during the en banc deliberations on Aug. 8, ordered the Commission on Elections to proclaim Roberto Uy Jr. as the winner in the May 2022 elections for Zamboanga del Norte’s first district representative.
The SC PIO stated that the Supreme Court set aside the Comelec’s order dated May 12, 2022, and resolution dated June 7, 2022.
The statement said the Supreme Court annulled the proclamation of Jalosjos. Reelectionist Jalosjos, Uy, Frederico Jalosjos and Richard Amazon vied for congressman of Zamboanga’s first district.
Romeo Jalosjos filed a petition in November 2021 to declare Frederico Jalosjos as a nuisance candidate and cancel his certificate of candidacy.
The Comelec ruled and declared Frederico as a nuisance candidate in April 2022.
After the election, Romeo Jalosjos filed a motion to suspend Uy’s proclamation, saying that Frederico’s votes must be credited to him.
The Provincial Board of Canvassers issued a ruling, suspending Uy’s proclamation based on a Comelec en banc order.
Uy went to the Supreme Court to file a petition. The Comelec, meanwhile, denied Frederico Jalosjos’ motion for reconsideration for being filed beyond the deadline. The Comelec order the votes of Frederico be credited to Romeo Jalosjos Jr., who was eventually proclaimed by the provincial board of canvassers.
The SC PIO statement said that the Supreme Court “also emphasized that R. Jalosjos had not yet assumed office in view of the status quo ante order it issued, adding that the status quo ante order does not permit any proclamation while the case is pending and, thus, renders any proclamation ineffective.”
“The Court further said that the suspension of proclamation of a winning candidate is not a matter which the COMELEC can dispose of motu proprio,” the SC PIO stated.
It added, “The Court further ruled that the COMELEC’s power to suspend the proclamation of a winning candidate is not available in proceedings to declare one a nuisance candidate.”
The SC PIO also stated that “the Court also ruled that the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET) has no jurisdiction over the case, since it acquires jurisdiction only when all of the following requisites are met: (1) a valid proclamation; (2) a proper oath; and (3) assumption of office. In the case of R. Jalosjos, he did not take an oath of office before the Speaker of the House in open session, which bars him from performing his functions. Neither has R. Jalosjos assumed office. Thus, the requisites that vest HRET jurisdiction are not present.”
Lawyer Edward Gialogo, an expert in Philippine election laws who has represented politicians, questioned the decision of the Supreme Court.
Based on the press statement of the SC PIO, Gialogo said contrary to the Supreme Court decision, Jalosjos’ case should be resolved by the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET).
“What the Supreme Court is saying is that Cong. Jalosjos’ oath is not valid since the valid oath is the oath done before the Speaker in open session,” said Gialogo.
He said this is surprising since based on the Constitution, congressmen are the ones who elect the speaker.
“How can there be a speaker when there are no valid members? Second, if that is the rule that you will only be a member [of the House of Representatives] when you take your oath before the speaker at the SONA [State of the Nation Address], this means that we have no congressmen from June 30 up to the day of the SONA,” said Gialogo.
He said SONA is mandated by the Constitution to be held on the fourth Monday of July.
“What will happen is that there will be an involuntary gap in the terms of our congressmen. Involuntary gap means a congressman cannot complete the three years. This means the three-term limits will not apply to you because there will be a gap,” he said.
He added, “The implication of the decision if not changed by the Supreme Court is that the terms of congressmen will be unlimited. What I see is that the Supreme Court erred in that because HRET should have jurisdiction.”
Gialogo said a congressman taking an oath before the speaker is merely ceremonial.
“Because if we require that the speaker will administer the oath, then who will elect the speaker when they are not valid members?” he said.
He cited as an example the case of Senator Koko Pimentel, who was allowed by the Comelec to run for senator in the 2019 elections despite having served two terms.
Gialogo said there was an involuntary gap in his first term in 2007 when the Comelec allowed Senator Miguel Zubiri to serve.
In Jalosjos’ case, he said, the Comelec had already made a decision that Frederico Jalosjos is a nuisance candidate.
“We know that the Supreme Court is not a trier of facts. We have a rule that the findings of the Comelec should be binding with the Supreme Court since Comelec has the expertise,” he said.
Gialogo said Frederico Jalosjos admitted that “Kuya Jan” was not his nickname when he filed a petition for inclusion as a registered voter.
