Party-list winners proclaimed this week – Comelec

MANILA, Philippines - The winning party-list organizations may be proclaimed within the week, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said yesterday.

“Maybe we can (proclaim) by Thursday or Friday,” said Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. in an ambush interview.

A total of 123 party-list groups are included in the official ballots but only 111 are qualified.

Brillantes said they are waiting for the manifestation of the 12 disqualified party-list groups on whether they will appeal the case to the Supreme Court.

“A little problem cropped up because we don’t know where to send the notice. So we don’t know, the others have no manifestation yet... So we’ll just wait until tomorrow,” he said.

The 12 disqualified groups are Agapay ng Indigenous Peoples Rights Alliance, Inc. (A-IPRA); Abang Lingkod Party-List (ABANG LINGKOD); Alliance for Nationalism and Democracy (ANAD); Ang Galing Pinoy (AG); Atong Paglaum, Inc. (Atong Paglaum); Kaagapay ng Nagkakaisang Agilang Pilipinong Magsasaka (KAP); Coalition of Senior Citizens in the Philippines, Inc. (SENIOR CITIZENS); Social Movement for Active Reform and Transparency (SMART); 1st Kabalikat ng Bayan Ginhawang Sangkatauhan (1st KABAGIS); The True Marcos Loyalist (for God, Country and People) Association of the Philippines, Inc. (BANTAY); Philippine Coconut Producers Federation, Inc. (COCOFED) and Binhi-Partido ng mga Magsasaka Para sa mga Magsasaka (BINHI).

Last Monday’s canvassing report showed that Senior Citizens is among the top 10 groups.

The Party-list System law states that groups that receive at least two percent of the total votes cast for the party-list system shall be entitled to one seat each.

Those that garner more than two percent of the votes shall be entitled to additional seats in proportion to their total number of votes, but no group shall be entitled to more than three seats.