Supreme Court affirms Comelec’s dismissal of disqualification case against Tulfo

April 8, 2024 , 10:47 PM

By Gabriel Kim Leal

(April 8, 2024) – The Supreme Court has upheld the decision of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to dismiss the disqualification case against Sen. Raffy Tulfo, citing the Senate Electoral Tribunal’s (SET) exclusive jurisdiction over such matters.

The decision came in response to a petition filed by Tulfo’s alleged wife, Julieta Licup Pearson, who sought to disqualify him from holding public office on various grounds, including a previous libel conviction and alleged illegal campaign activities.

The Supreme Court, citing Section 17, Article VI of the Constitution, and established jurisprudence, clarified the division of powers in election disputes.

“Once a winning candidate had been proclaimed, taken oath, and assumed office, the Comelec’s jurisdiction over election contests relating to their election, return, and qualifications ceases, and the SET assumes jurisdiction,” read a portion of the decision, which was penned last April 3 and was released publicly on Monday.

Under the rules of the SET, any registered voter who seeks to disqualify a member of the Senate on the grounds of disloyalty or ineligibility must file a petition “within fifteen days after assumption of the office of the respondent.”

Pearson, however, failed to meet the deadline.

“Pearson failed to timely file the appropriate case before the SET and cannot remedy this failure by invoking the Court’s certiorari powers,” added the high court.

In February 2023, the Comelec en banc unanimously junked with finality the disqualification case filed by Pearson, upholding the Comelec First Division’s ruling in 2022.

Pearson, who filed a bigamy case against Tulfo in 2019, also claimed that there was a “misrepresentation in his (Tulfo’s) certificate of candidacy (COC)” by declaring “he is not legally married to his declared wife in the COC.”

Tulfo, a popular broadcaster turned first-time lawmaker, placed third in the 2022 senatorial elections after garnering 23.3 million votes.

(PM)

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