MANILA — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has suspended the proclamation of the Duterte Youth party-list as one of the winners in the May 12 midterm polls.

This announcement was made by Atty. Emil Marañon III, counsel for Reeya Beatrice Magtalas, Abigail Aleli Tan, Aunell Ross Angcos, and Raainah Punzalan. These individuals had petitioned the Comelec on May 15 to delay the group’s proclamation, emphasizing that their petition questioning Duterte Youth’s compliance with registration requirements remains unresolved.

In a Facebook post, Marañon stated: “Just now, the COMELEC issued NBOC Resolution 14-25 granting our prayer to suspend the proclamation of Duterte Youth while the resolution of our case is pending. We thank everyone who joined us in this 5-year battle. Kapit lang tayo, malapit na ‘to!”

He attached images of the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) Resolution 14-25 to his post.

The youth leaders initially filed a petition against the Duterte Youth party-list in 2019. They argued that it was “illegal and unconstitutional” for the Duterte Youth to be allowed registration without fulfilling the publication and hearing requirements, as stipulated in the 1987 Constitution and the Party-List System Act.

Under the Kabataan Tayo ang Pag-asa electoral watchdog group, the same youth leaders revived the proceedings on March 25 by filing an urgent motion with the Comelec to resolve the 2019 petition.

Marañon noted, “The case has been pending for more than five years,” and insisted that the Comelec should act on the five-year-old petition before allowing Duterte Youth to join the incoming 20th Congress.

“It is not only prudent, but it is a legal necessity to suspend the proclamation of Duterte Youth until petitioners’ case is resolved,” he underscored.

He pointed out that the votes for Duterte Youth are subject to further determination by the Comelec, emphasizing that votes for a non-candidate shall be considered stray votes under the Omnibus Election Code.

He explained that if considered stray, the group’s votes will be excluded from the computation of seats for party-list groups, and other groups may be admitted into the list of winning party-list candidates.

This is why Duterte Youth’s proclamation should be suspended until the petition against it is resolved, he insisted.

“In other words, the conclusive settlement of the issue of the status of Duterte Youth is a prejudicial question that must first be resolved prior to its proclamation,” he said.

The proclamation of party-list groups is set to be held on Monday afternoon, May 19.

Kabataan, Tayo Ang Pag-asa stated, “It is necessary that Duterte Youth be suspended as their proclamation is a disservice to the nation amid unresolved motions and relentless attacks against the youth.”

They earlier led the signing of a Unity Statement calling on the Comelec to disqualify the Duterte Youth in the elections.

The group said, “The COMELEC shall decide NOW. Over 100 youth organizations join the call in disqualifying Duterte Youth. Moreso, to uphold clean, honest, fair, and peaceful elections, it must also resolve reported cases of fraud and violence.”

“The Filipino people deserve genuine representation in government. The party-list law must be amended and not be bastardized by the likes of the Duterte Youth. There should be no space for any individual or organization that harms people and degrades their initiatives in a government that is meant to serve the masses,” it added.

Signatories to the Unity Statement include the College Editors Guild of the Philippines, National Union of Students of the Philippines, Anakbayan, League of Filipino Students, Student Christian Movement of the Philippines, University of the Philippines Office of the Student Regent, and several others.

Comelec Chairman George Garcia earlier announced that only 52 of the 54 party-list groups that won seats in the recent elections will be proclaimed.

He said, “Dalawa po ang sinuspinde sa proklamasyon dahil po mayroon silang pending case sa Comelec. Again inuulit natin hindi po nangangahulugang hindi sila nanalo.”

Garcia stressed that it’s better to resolve their pending cases first.

📷 Emil Marañon lll