The release of the decision on the disqualification cases filed against presidential aspirant Ferdinand 'Bongbong' Marcos will be delayed after a staff of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) First Division tested positive for COVID-19.
Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said the first division’s decision is expected to come out at "10 a.m. onwards" of Monday.
However, in a radio interview, Comelec Director III of the Education and Information Department Atty. Ellaiza Sabile-David said the draft was not ready yet.
"Hindi pa ready yung draft. Kasama na rin po ‘yung lawyers po sa office ng Commissioner, kung sino yung ponente po, ay nagkasakit, so medyo tinamaan din ng COVID. Magkakaroon po ng delay po sa paglabas ng decision ng promulgation,” she added.
[The draft is not yet ready. The lawyers in the office of one of the commissioners were hit by COVID-19. There will be a delay in the release of the decision.)
Comelec's First Division is composed of Commissioners Rowena Guanzon, Marlon Casquejo, and Aimee Ferolino-Ampoloquio.
In a tweet, Guanzon clarified that one of the commissioners is in isolation after having contact with the staff that contracted the virus.
The Comelec division is resolving three disqualification cases against Marcos, which were consolidated during the preliminary conference last January 7 which the former senator failed to attend.
The consolidated disqualification petitions include the case filed by martial law victims led by Bonifacio Ilagan, Akbayan Citizens’ Action Party, and a faction of Partido Federal ng Pilipinas (PFP) led by Abubakar Mangelen.
Both groups of petitioners argued that Marcos’ conviction for non-payment of taxes and non-filing of income tax returns have a penalty of perpetual disqualification from public office.
On Monday, the Comelec's Second Division junked the petition seeking to cancel the certificate of candidacy (COC) of Marcos.
