THE PHILIPPINE Supreme Court (SC) has found the Commission on Elections (Comelec) guilty of inordinate delay in investigating the case of a mayoral candidate in San Marcelino, Zambales who had been charged with overspending for her campaign in 2010.
“The Court finds that the COMELEC is guilty of inordinate delay in the conduct of its preliminary investigation against petitioner. Consequently, the issuance of the assailed resolutions is tainted with grave abuse of discretion that warrants their nullification,” the 19-page decision penned by Justice Henri Jean Paul B. Inting read.
The ruling said that since the Comelec had violated petitioner’s right to speedy disposition of cases, “the dismissal of the complaint against her is warranted.”
In issuing its decision last Jan. 30, the SC En Banc said “the Court no longer finds the need to discuss the other issues raised in the petition pertaining to the merits of the election offense purportedly committed by petitioner,” Ana Liza A. Peralta.
The case against Ms. Peralta stemmed from her submission of her Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) on June 7, 2010, which the Comelec’s Campaign Finance Unit only started to investigate on May 9, 2015.
She was accused of overspending during her campaign to the tune of P285,500, when the law only allowed P60,903.
In 2018, the Comelec En Banc found her guilty of overspending, prompting her to heed the High Court’s decision on the case, arguing the lengthy trial period of her case — from June 7, 2010 until May 25, 2022.
It was noted that the Comelec issued a resolution which found probable cause against her election overspending on Aug. 8, 2018, but Ms. Peralta only received a copy of that resolution on Feb. 18, 2020.
She filed for reconsideration, but the Comelec denied her motion 16 months later and furnished her a copy of it 10 months after it was issued.
The SC ruled “that because of the inexplicable delay of twelve years in the resolution of her election offense, she has already been deprived of her right to the speedy disposition of her case.” — Chloe Mari A. Hufana
