Comelec chief scraps plan to file ethics case vs Marcoleta

MANILA, Philippines — Commission on Elections Chairperson George Garcia will no longer pursue an ethics complaint against the lawmaker who accused him of having offshore bank accounts. 

Garcia said in a statement on Thursday, September 5, that he never intended to take legal action against Rep. Rodante Marcoleta (Sagip Partylist) and would rather focus on preparations for the upcoming elections.

"From the start, I said I had no intention to file a case... so I will leave what was done to me to God," Garcia said in a mix of English and Filipino. 

Marcoleta in August accused Garcia of owning offshore accounts in the Cayman Islands with deposits amounting to P1 billion. The lawmaker said these were sent to Garcia in connection to the Comelec's awarding of a P17.9-billion contract to Miru Systems to provide machines for the 2025 midterm elections. 

Denying Marcoleta's allegations, the chairperson of the poll body announced on August 8 that he plans to initiate an ethics case against him. 

A month after, Garcia said he now prefers to focus on ironing out the poll body's pending issues related to the upcoming elections.

"If we discuss the issues regarding the machines, the contractors, and the contracts entered into by Comelec, that would greatly benefit the public," Garcia said.

Garcia said he also wrote to the group Bayanihan Para sa Karangalan at Kaunlaran ng mga Pilipino to urge them to drop their planned ethics and disbarment complaints against Marcoleta. 

Meanwhile, the Comelec chairperson is ready to face a separate complaint filed by former lawmaker Edgar Erice against members of the Comelec Special Bids and Awards Committee over the contract they awarded to Miru Systems.

"So be it. We are willing to defend ourselves and defend the contract that we entered," Garcia said.

Poll watchdog Democracy Watch earlier expressed concern about Comelec's decision to award a joint venture led by Miru Systems with the contract to supply the vote counting machines for the 2025 midterm elections.  

The group cited Miru Systems' troubled history in Iraq and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, where it faced fraud allegations.

In April, Erice asked the Supreme Court to halt the Comelec from implementing its P17.9-billion contract with Miru Systems, saying the contract violates provisions of the country's election laws.