AN INDIVIDUAL can file another certificate of candidacy (COC) for a different position within the five-day filing period but he would have to withdraw the first one, Commission on Elections (Comelec) spokesman James Jimenez said yesterday.
“Under the rules, kapag may nag-file ng more than one COC, they are deemed not filed,” said Jimenez.
“If you file multiple COCs, yes, you can withdraw it as long as it is within the filing period,” he added.
Questions over the possibility were raised after the COC of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte was filed by his chief-of-staff, Christopher Go, yesterday for reelection, to the dismay of his supporters who are pushing him to run for president.
Duterte’s move came as a surprise after rumors circulated that he is in Manila to file his COC for president at the Comelec main office in Manila.
Speculations were even fanned after throngs of Duterte supporters camped outside the Palacio del Gobernador, with some even shaving their heads to manifest their desire for him to run for president.
Friday is the last day for the filing of COCs for elective posts nationwide.
Based on the rules on substitution, election lawyer Romulo Macalintal said reelectionist Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada cannot substitute for Senator Grace Poe or Vice President Jejomar Binay if both are disqualified from running for president.
Macalintal said Poe cannot be substituted as because it is not allowed for an independent candidate.
He said Estrada cannot substitute for Binay because they are not party-mates.
Macalintal said even if Estrada can substitute for the two, he may also face legal problems since the Constitution provides that an elected president is not eligible for any election.
He said even if Estrada was allowed to run for president in 2010, the issue was not resolved by the Supreme Court because it became moot and academic when he lost to President Aquino.
Estrada said he would only run for president in 2016 if Poe or Binay is disqualified.
Jimenez also reminded those making fun of the “colorful” political aspirants that being declared a nuisance candidate is based on a person’s candidacy, not his personality.
“Ang tinutukoy na nuisance candidate is actually ‘yung candidate na makakagulo lamang or hindi makikitang maka-contribute significantly sa kabuuang proseso,” he said.
Under the Omnibus Election Code, an individual may be declared as a nuisance candidate “if it is shown that said certificate has been filed to put the election process in mockery or disrepute; or to cause confusion among the voters by the similarity of the names of the registered candidates; or by other circumstances or acts which clearly demonstrate that the candidate has no bona fide intention to run for the office.”
Among the more popular candidates who have filed their COCs this week are Daniel Magtira, who claims to be the “husband” of presidential sister Kris Aquino, and Romeo John Ygonia, also known as Archangel Lucifer.
On December 10, the Comelec is set to come out with the final list of candidates for the 18,069 positions to be contested in the May polls after purging the list of those considered as nuisance candidates. – With Ashzel Hachero
source: Malaya
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