Comelec awaits request for special election to replace Teves

MANILA, Philippines — Special polls may be needed to find a replacement for expelled Negros Oriental 3rd District Rep. Arnolfo Teves Jr., according to the Commission on Elections.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia said the poll body is ready to hold special elections if ordered by the House of Representatives.

“If we will be directed to hold a special election in the district, we will comply with haste,” Garcia said yesterday.

He said the call for special polls is an exclusive discretion of the House of Representatives.

“Congress will have to declare a vacancy and then direct us to hold a special election,” the Comelec chief explained.

He said the 3rd district of Negros Oriental must be represented in Congress immediately after the expulsion of Teves. He also stressed that Teves is not at this time perpetually disqualified from seeking public office again.

“Wala po siya conviction by final judgment,” Garcia said, adding that Teves’ removal from office is administrative in nature.

But he said there is not enough time for Comelec to hold the special polls simultaneously with the Oct. 30 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

The 265 members of the House of Representatives earlier voted to expel Teves, as recommended by its committee on ethics, for disorderly behavior. Teves, who is being linked to the March 4 killing of Negros Oriental governor Roel Degamo, has not returned to the country since filing a medical leave in February.

At a press briefing, House Secretary General Reginald Velasco said they have already served Teves, through his office, a notice of his expulsion as House member.

“We are still awaiting the House leadership on who will be the caretaker of the district of Mr. Teves … In the past, usually the neighboring district of the congressman concerned is the one appointed as caretaker. So in Negros Oriental, there are three congressman there,” he pointed out.

Asked about the status of Teves’ staff, the official said they are “co-terminus” with the congressman.

“At the end of the term of a congressman, they will have to vacate the room, leave the office, unless they are rehired by the caretaker,” he explained.

Velasco added they have already notified the Comelec of the vacancy. He admitted it might now be difficult to conduct special elections for Teves’ district as the poll body is now busy preparing for the barangay and SK polls.

“The whole year 2024, Comelec will be busy for the 2025 elections. It seems Comelec no longer has the time and resources to prepare for special elections. But we don’t want to preempt Comelec, we have to wait,” he added.

Asked whether Teves could still run for congressman in the future, Velasco is not certain.

“This is unprecedented. There is no precedence whether he will still be eligible to run. The final word if he will qualify will come from the Comelec,” he said.

He said it’s not established yet if expulsion comes with perpetual disqualification.

“If we look at current rules of the House, there is none. It’s just that expulsion is one of the disciplinary actions,” he added.

The Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), meanwhile, is studying whether to kick out Teves following his expulsion from the House of Representatives.

“That’s something that we have to discuss also amongst ourselves because there is local party involved in Negros, how do they feel about it and all of this,” said NPC chair and Rizal Rep. Michael John Duavit. — Sheila Crisostomo