Comelec must act on election petitions

The people must be wondering: why does the Comelec remain mum amid protests warring political rivals are heaping on each other this past election?

Perhaps it is high time we nudge the Comelec chairman awake. The most pressing case on his table is the dispute over the second highest position in the land between Vice President Leni Robredo and Senator Bongbong Marcos.

Another matter getting the cold shoulder from the Comelec is the appeal of former MMDA Chairman Francis Tolentino against former DOJ Secretary Leila De Lima. The two both ran for senator last May and the latter is now sitting. Once more, the poll commission appears mum, if not immobile on this. What we must remember is that swift resolution is expected not just by the contesting parties but by the nation at large.

In the final analysis, we just want the rightful victors to take their deserved place, regardless of whether we voted for them or not: something the respectable Comelec commissioners must be taken to task for.        

There is a local saying that goes (and we’re taking some translating liberties here) the nail won’t burrow itself; you have to hit it on the head. The proverbial hammer may come in the form of relentless Commissioner Rowena Guanzon, along with her colleagues in the commission.  

Though the poll-related tiffs between Marcos-Robredo and Tolentino-De Lima – virtual stalemates which people have been losing patience over – admittedly need careful consideration, the same cannot be said of the more glaring inconsistencies in the party-list race. More specifically, the following entities are facing disqualification cases that are near-impossible to contest: ACTS-OFW, CIBAC, 1CARE, 1-ANG EDUKASYON, and TUCP, first-time offenders all, most of whom allegedly having questionable actions regarding their nominations and nominees. 

The biggest conundrum facing Chairman Bautista and his commissioners in the party-list race, however, is Senior Citizens Partylist. Imagine: two victorious elections, no actual nominees taking up seats, their pitiful sector left to fend for themselves. — CECILLE LOPEZ, Pasig City