Ang gulo ng kasong to nung nirecite ko sa class. Yun teacher kase sabat ng sabat eh. FACTS (SABAT), ISSUE (SABAT SABAT), RULING (SABAT SABAT SABAT). Di nga ako umabot ng issue & ruling eh.. FACTS palang (sabat sabat sabat sabat sabat sabat sabat..)
This is an electoral contest case. COMELEC matter. (Geez speaking of the COMELEC, I think I have a pending job application with the said government office, particularly with ECAD (Electoral Contests Adjudication Department) where my tita was the director. I’ve figured sayang professional civil service eligibility ko so one unexpected funny day I popped up in her office. “Tita Betty!” “Hello!! how are you. (bless) O!! bat nandito ka? Kamusta mommy mo?” “Ok lang.. magaaply ako tita” “Saan? Dito?.. o may opening kame kailangan namen ng ‘court interpreter’” “Yown!!” “Ay nako kaya lang bat ngayon ka lang?? baka may kalaban ka na” “Why tita?” “Paalis na ako, I'm retiring & paving the way for the new director, in fact I’m already slowly packing up.. ayan nakita mo yang mga box na yan?” “Onga no hehe and I’m sure the new director will have her own people to bring in.. darn” "Hay nako.. sana inagahan mo.. bakit ngayon mo lang sinabe.. kumain ka na ba?..” LOL wrong timing.. bummer.
This is an electoral contest case. COMELEC matter. (Geez speaking of the COMELEC, I think I have a pending job application with the said government office, particularly with ECAD (Electoral Contests Adjudication Department) where my tita was the director. I’ve figured sayang professional civil service eligibility ko so one unexpected funny day I popped up in her office. “Tita Betty!” “Hello!! how are you. (bless) O!! bat nandito ka? Kamusta mommy mo?” “Ok lang.. magaaply ako tita” “Saan? Dito?.. o may opening kame kailangan namen ng ‘court interpreter’” “Yown!!” “Ay nako kaya lang bat ngayon ka lang?? baka may kalaban ka na” “Why tita?” “Paalis na ako, I'm retiring & paving the way for the new director, in fact I’m already slowly packing up.. ayan nakita mo yang mga box na yan?” “Onga no hehe and I’m sure the new director will have her own people to bring in.. darn” "Hay nako.. sana inagahan mo.. bakit ngayon mo lang sinabe.. kumain ka na ba?..” LOL wrong timing.. bummer.
Let's get back to the case. This is a provincial election case matter. The action was instituted in the CFI of Camarines Sur.by Pedro Abendante against Baldomero Relato both were running for Mayorship of Cabusao, Camarines Sur during the elections of November 13, 1951, grabe, actually this was decided 1953. ( You know sometimes I love that era, the 50s?, I think God made a mistake, I was born late, I would have loved to see that era. He should’ve brought me into this world earlier, you know, okay lang kahit mas matanda na ako kaysa ngayon. I mean I could do away with all these gadgets and stuff, technology, the internet, I could live without it, just give me a ranch somewhere in the outskirts of Manila and about a handful of thorough breds I’m so fine with that. I dunno I think the 50s is the golden age, when we were all prim and proper, and all dressed up decent, strongly principled and all, and our language clean. WTF beam back Scotty!!)
So Pedro Abendante, a Liberal, ran for and against Baldomero Relato, a Nacionalista. The thing was, between Libmanan and Cabusao there is a leper colony, known as Bicol Treatment Station, and in this colony precinct No. 11 was created in connection with the elections held on November 13, 1951.
The Board of Canvassers of Cabusao canvassed the result of the election but EXCLUDED THEREFROM THE VOTES CAST IN PRECINCT NO. 11, It was declared illegal by the said Board, coz you see during those times all lepers or inmates of the leprosarium were not entitled to vote pursuant to a repeal of Sections 14 and 15 of Republic Act No. 180 by Section 4 of the Republic Act No. 599.
So to make the long story short they proclaimed Pedro Abendante as mayor-elect with a majority of 56 votes.
Here comes the controversy..
Another Board of Canvassers was constituted at the instance of the Assistant Provincial Fiscal of Camarines Sur, and said Board, and in their canvassing the election returns, INCLUDED THE VOTES CAST IN PRECINCT NO. 11, and proclaimed Baldomero Relato as mayor-elect with a majority of 82 votes.
Funny isn’t it, the deciding vote is determined by a group of lepers. I mean it’s not suppose to be funny, who would want to laugh at their predicament, but notice these two candidates? Fighting for an issue out of something they wouldn’t normally care about, and in fact I’m sure they would shun away from. But this time it’s life and death to them and they were almost embracing the issue. (Pag election talaga lalabas talaga kulay mo.. di ka lang magpapapicture and yayakapin mga street kid and magkakamay kasama kumaen mahihirap.. yayakapen mo pa pati may ketong manalo ka lang.)
The Commission on Elections revoked the two certificates of canvass and the two proclamations made by the Boards of Canvassers already referred to and directed the Board of Canvassers originally constituted to reconvene and make a new canvass of the election returns, including therein the votes cast in precinct No. 11.
Then the original Board of Canvassers reconvened and made a new canvass as directed by the COMELEC but refrained from making any proclamation contending that the votes cast in said precinct were illegal and void. Upon insistence of the Commission on Elections and its representatives, the Board of Canvassers proclaimed Baldomero Relato as the duly elected mayor with 935 votes as against protestant's 853.
The lower court decided that the lepers who voted in precinct No. 11 are qualified voters, and, as a result, declared Relato legally elected. From this decision Abendante appealed.
ISSUE:
1. The validity of the votes cast in precinct No. 11.
2. Does Comelec have the power to cancel the canvass of election returns of the Board of Canvassers.
HELD:
1. As to the validity, there was a claim that the lepers who cast their votes in precinct No. 11 do not have the residence qualification because they are allegedly residents of the municipality of Libmanan, for which reason, it is claimed, they have no right to be registered in the list of voters of said precinct.
So it’s a question of fact which should be established by sufficient evidence and it was found out in this case the evidence was wanting. So.. not that there was no accurate evidence.. its just that of course the court could not take judicial notice coz it’s a fact that should be proven.
So the presumption is.. the Board of Inspectors have passed upon the qualifications of said voters when they presented themselves for registration because the Board entered their names in the list, so logically it follows that they were qualified. (Syempre alangan na bang isulat mo yung hindi naman boboto e para kang eng-eng non. Ang tanong pano kaya nila sinulat… “Eeeew!! Wag mo na isulat ako na magsusulat.. EEEEWWW!!!” )
Even supposing that said voters are disqualified for lack of residence qualification this matter should have been brought up before the Board of Inspectors during the period provided for by law for the exclusion of voters. having failed to do so, it is now too late to raise this question in these proceedings. Syempre ganon naman eh.. lagging too late pag Comelec.
2. So obviously Abendante raised the issue of whether the Commission on Elections can cancel the canvass of the election returns made by the legally constituted Board of Canvassers which proclaimed the him as mayor-elect. So obviously it was contended that the Commission on Elections has no such power and therefore the proclamation made by the Board of Canvassers after said period upon the instruction of the Commission on Elections has no valid effect.
Under the Constitution, the COMELEC is charged with the exclusive duty of enforcing and administering all laws relative to the conduct of elections (Section 2, Article X, Constitution of the Philippines). In addition to the powers and functions conferred upon it by the Constitution, the COMELEC has direct and immediate supervision over the provincial, municipal, and city officials designated by law to perform the duties relative to the conduct of elections (Section 3, Revised Election Code).
The duties of the municipal Board of Canvassers are MINISTERIAL IN CHARACTER, and extend only to the counting of votes as they appear in the statements of election received from the municipal treasurer and to the issuance of the necessary statement of the result of their canvass. (Galang vs. Miranda, et al., 36 Phil., 316, 319-320.) Its duty being ministerial, it follows that the Board of Canvassers can not pass on the validity of an election return, and much less exclude it from the canvass on the ground that the votes cast in the precinct where the returns came from are illegal. The Board of Canvassers of Cabusao failed to do its duty when it excluded from the canvass the returns coming from precinct No. 11. The Commission on Elections was therefore justified in ordering said Board to reconvene and make a new canvass by including the returns in said precinct.
Even supposing that the Commission on Elections has exceeded its authority because the period for filing a protest has already elapsed when it acted on the matter, appellant is deemed to have waived his right to question such irregularity when he failed to take the matter to the Supreme Court by way of certiorari as required by law. (Section 5, Revised Election Code.)
So I guess Baldomero Relato wins this case and therefor went on to win the said mayoralty race.
I wonder if he did something to go back and thank the lepers who voted for him and saw to it that their welfare were assuredly taken care of. Otherwise our humanitarian character of the Filipino candidate had been degraded and degeneration could have started from that day slowly creeping in and eating up like leprosy ever since.
