Third disqualification case against Poe filed at the COMELEC

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MANILA — A third disqualification case has been lodged against presidential aspirant Senator Grace Poe before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday.

In his 14-page petition for Cancellation of Certificate of Candidacy (CoC), Political Science Professor Antonio Contreras asked the poll body to cancel Poe’s CoC for misrepresentation about her residency.

“Wherefore, it is respectfully prayed that this petition be granted and that the certificate of candidacy of the herein respondent Mary Grace Natividad Sonora Poe-Llamanzares be cancelled on the ground that she made a material misrepresentation about her residency, where she lacks the ten year minimum residency required by law and the Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines to run for President,” he said in his petition.

Article VII, Section 2 of the Constitution states, “No person may be elected President unless he is a natural-born citizen of the Philippines, a registered voter, able to read and write, at least 40 years of age on the day of the election, and a resident of the Philippines for a period of ten years immediately preceding such election.”

The petitioner noted that based on his calculation, the senator is lacking two months and nine days, based on what she indicated in her CoC.

“Naglagay siya sa kanyang COC na meron siyang 10 years 11 months sa May 9, 2016. Based on my calculations, it’s not true. Kulang siya (ng) 2 months and 9 days,” he said in an interview.

Meanwhile, Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista said that all disqualification cases to be filed against the lawmaker will be consolidated and be heard by the poll body’s Second Division.

“Napag-usapan yan kanina. Kasi na-raffle (na) eh. Yung unang case was raffled to the second division… And ang agreement, since sa kanila na na-raffle, then all other petitions for disqualification will be consolidated,” he said.

The said case is the third disqualification case filed against Poe since she submitted her CoC last Thursday. The other two cases were filed by former Senator Francisco Tatad and Atty. Estrella Elamparo.