PDP-Laban plea to resume COC filing raises worries of poll delays
MANILA, Philippines — The administration party's petition to reopen the filing of certificates of candidacy could cause problems if it will mean delaying the May 9 elections, Sen. Panfilo Lacson said Monday as he stressed that President Rodrigo Duterte's term cannot extend beyond June 30.
Lacson, who is running for president, said that he is not accusing the administration of attempts at term extension but said the Senate can preserve the line of succession by electing a Senate president who could step in as acting president in case polls are delayed.
"If such a scenario becomes imminent, before Congress adjourns, we will elect a new Senate president whose term expires on June 30, 2025," he said, adding the Senate president will then "act as president until a new president or vice president shall have been chosen and qualified."
"Most of my colleagues have already agreed to this proposal, since democracy and the fundamental law of the land could be at risk," he also said.
Lacson was reacting to a petition that one faction of the PDP-Laban party has filed with the Commission on Elections to reopen the filing of COCs and delay the printing of ballots that will be used for the May elections.
The PDP-Laban faction led by Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi said the Comelec cannot print the ballots yet anyway since there are pending petitions at the poll body and at the Supreme Court that would affect some aspirants and party-list groups seeking office.
The party also said it did not have enough time "to remedy the political vacuum" created by Sen. Ronald Dela Rosa's withdrawal of his candidacy for president, itself a last-minute decision by PDP-Laban.
Rival faction raises concerns of poll delay
A rival faction of the PDP-Laban led by Sen. Aquilino Pimentel III also cautioned against the petition, saying it "may result in delaying and derailing the electoral process" and would risk "failed elections to prolong their hold on power."
Rumors of term extensions and "no election" scenarios are common in the waning days of a presidency.
Senatorial aspirant Lutgardo Barbo, vice chair of the Pimentel faction, said the Comelec should not let the Cusi faction "illegally and idiotically acting as representatives of the PDP Laban...further destroy the party and the electoral process for their own selfish and evil ends."
The Cusi-led faction had planned to field the tandem of Sen. Christopher "Bong" Go and President Rodrigo Duterte in the May elections but had Dela Rosa file his COC for president instead with Go as a last-minute candidate for vice-president.
In a flurry of substitutions last November, Go moved up as presidential candidate of a minor allied party while Duterte said he would instead run for senator. Both also withdrew their candidacies in December, leaving the administration party with no official candidate for president. — Jonathan de Santos
- Latest
- Trending
