BONTOC, Mountain Province September 23 – The 1st Division of the Commission on elections (COMELEC), denied the motion for reconsideration filed by substitute gubernatorial candidate Atty. Kathy JyllMayaen-Luis for the lifting of the writ of preliminary injunction that barred her from taking her oath of office as Provincial governor after finding such motion without merit.
In a 2-page order dated September 14, 2016, Presiding Commissioner Christian Robert S. Lim and Commissioners Louie Tito F. Guia and Ma. Rowena Amelia V. Guanzon were unanimous in ruling that there was no congent reason for the poll body to lift the writ of preliminary injunction since the arguments raised by the camp of the younger Mayaen were simply reiterations already stated in their previous pleadingswhich were considered in past upon when the Commission found the necessity of issuing the writ.
“The respondent (Mayaen-Luis) failed to raise any substantial argument meriting reconsideration of the writ,”the order stated.
The poll body advised the parties concerned to simply await future orders in relation to the hearings that will be scheduled to resolve the petition for quo warranto filed by Thom Tawagen that questioned the qualification of the younger Mayaen to be the substitute candidate of her father and subsequently being proclaimed as Provincial governor using the certificates of canvass of votes for her late father even as the Commission en banc denied her certificate of candidacy as substitute pursuant to Resolution No. 16-0342 promulgated on May 7, 2016 and received by the members of the Provincial |board of Canvassers (PBOC) prior to the proclamation of winners in the province.
It can be recalled that on June 29, 2016, the poll body’s 1st Division issued a writ of preliminary injunction barring the younger Mayaen from taking her oath as Provincial governor in lieu of her late father who succumbed to cardiac arrest last March 31, 2016 after being unopposed to the province’s gubernatorial post, granting the prayer of Tawagen for the issuance of the said order considering that she was no longer qualified for the position after the Commission en banc denied her certificate of candidacy as substitute for her father.
Because of the timely issuance of the writ of preliminary injunction, Vice governor BonifacioLacwasan, Jr. took his oath for the position where he was also unopposed and subsequently took his oath as Provincial governor pursuant to the Comelec order.
The Mayaen camp filed a must urgent motion for reconsideration before the 1st Division on September 1, 2016 praying for the immediate resolution of her pending motion for reconsideration and the subsequent lifting of the writ of preliminary injunction for her to be able to take her oath and assume the post as Provincial governor arguing the fact that the votes for her father which was over 60,600 or majority of the voters of the province speaks well of their desire for her to continue the programs and projects that were not implemented.
The poll body required Tawagen to post a P100,000 cash bond in order to make the writ operational and that the same remains posted with the poll body until the case shall have been fully ruled upon by the competent courts among others.
By HENT
