Palace leaves to Comelec to settle disagreement

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MANILA – Malacañang on Sunday expressed optimism that the Commission on Election (Comelec), as an independent constitutional body, will be able to resolve the disagreement among its officials on the disqualification case of presidential aspirant Grace Poe.

Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) Secretary Herminio Coloma Jr. made this reaction after Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista reportedly questioned the move of Commissioner Rowena Guanzon to submit the poll body’s comments on Poe’s cases.

Bautista said the comments were unauthorized, asking Guanzon and the law department in a memorandum to explain “under whose authority was the comment filed.”

The Comelec chairman described the acts “not only irregular but personally disrespectful.”

Coloma said the Comelec en banc will meet on Monday to discuss the issue.

”The Comelec is an independent body and it is proper to just wait for the result of their discussion,” Coloma said in a Radyo ng Bayan interview.

Coloma underscored the need to keep the integrity of the Comelec “especially now that the election period has formally started today (Sunday).”

In a radio interview on DZBB on Sunday, Guanzon denied speculation that the Comelec is in disarray due to the alleged disagreement among its officials on how to handle Poe’s disqualification case.

“We might be disunited but we’re not in disarray,” Guanzon said.

She assured the public that the Comelec en banc will be able to settle the issue.

“The public should not worry. We’re assuring the public that we will have fair, clean, orderly and honest election,” Guanzon said.