SC finds Comelec guilty of contempt in Amad case

MANILA, Philippines — The Supreme Court (SC) has found the Commission on Elections (Comelec) guilty of contempt for failure to implement a restraining order, directing the poll body to include the name of Wilson Caritero Amad in the printing of ballots as a candidate for vice president in the May 2022 general elections.

“Nevertheless, the members of the Commission on Elections are found guilty of contempt of the Supreme Court for their disobedience to the Court’s lawful directive, specifically the Temporary Restraining Order dated January 20, 2022,” the SC said in an 18-page decision signed by Associate Justice Samuel Gaerlan.

“Accordingly, they are reprimanded for this disobedience,” it added.

Chief Justice Alexander Gesmundo concurred with the decision along with Associate Justices Marvic Leonen, Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa, Ramon Paul Hernando, Amy Lazaro-Javier, Rodil Zalameda, Mario Lopez, Ricardo Rosario, Jhosep Lopez, Japar Dimaampao, Jose Midas Marquez and Maria Filomena Singh.

Associate Justices Henri Jean Paul Inting and Antoni Kho Jr. did not take part in the decision, which was promulgated on July 5, 2022 and made public on Nov. 22.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia said in a Viber message that they “thank the SC” for its guidance, emphasizing that similar incidents will not happen in the future while “proper and timely scheduling of activities and sufficient info campaign will be ensured.”

Prior to this, Amad filed his certificate of candidacy for vice president but was declared by Comelec as a “nuisance candidate.”

Amad filed his motion for reconsideration before the Comelec on Dec. 20, 2021 that was eventually denied by the poll body on Jan. 3, 2022, prompting him to file a petition on Jan. 4, 2022 asking the SC to issue a temporary restraining order against the Comelec’s decision as it committed “abuse of discretion.”

The SC then issued a TRO on Jan. 20, 2022 and directed the Comelec to include Amad’s name in official ballots for the May 9 polls, but was not implemented by the poll body, saying that it already started its preparations for ballot printing before the restraining order came out.

“Notably, without considering Amad’s statutory right to challenge the Comelec’s disposition, the Comelec proceeded with its pre-election activities, and even commenced the printing of the serialized ballots without Amad’s name on Jan. 23, 2022 after the court’s issuance of the TRO,” the SC said.