EDITORIAL - Penalize nuisance bets

Up to 95 percent of people who filed certificates of candidacy for the 2022 general elections will likely be declared as nuisance candidates. This is according to an official of the Commission on Elections, which is still waiting for the final lineup of candidates as the Nov. 15 deadline for substitutions approaches.

Nuisance candidates have simply been disqualified in previous races. The Comelec, burdened by a workload that has been made heavier by COVID-19 restrictions and rapid advances in technology that can be used for campaigning, now wants to go a step further, by imposing a fine on anyone who would be declared a nuisance candidate.

A Comelec legal official told the Senate committee on electoral reforms on Oct. 26 that the poll body was recommending a fine of P100,000 on anyone declared as a nuisance candidate. The Comelec also wants the person banned from seeking an elective post in the next two national and local elections.

The proposal makes sense, considering many of the crackpots who keep descending on the Comelec offices, seeking their 15 minutes of fame. Some have become such regular features during the filing period that they have lost the little entertainment value generated the first time they performed their stunt.

Then there are those who file candidacies to deliberately sabotage the chances of certain bets who share their surname. In 2019, for example, the Comelec declared 89 candidates for the Senate alone as nuisance.

If the proposal pushes through, care is needed to ensure that any declaration of a candidate as a nuisance will be fair and valid. Controversies are expected particularly in the case of those who agree to serve as placeholders for persons who have yet to make up their mind on their political plans. Determining if a person has “bona fide intention” to seek the post for which the candidacy has been filed can be tricky and open to legal challenges.

Still, the Comelec proposal deserves serious consideration. Going over certificates of candidacy is not an easy ministerial task. It takes time and effort, which are better used for the many other urgent tasks at hand in ensuring the conduct of orderly and credible elections. There should be no place for those who make a mockery of the electoral process.