THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday said it will issue a show cause order against Las Piñas Rep. Camille A. Villar, who is gunning for a Senate seat in the May 12 polls, for alleged vote buying.
Comelec Committee on Kontra Bigay Executive Director Teopisto E. Elnas, Jr. said that a Facebook video sent to them showed that Ms. Villar was allegedly involved in a raffle activity in Imus, Cavite which involved a cash prize.
“We will serve the show cause order… and we will wait for three days upon receipt. We will wait for the reply of (Ms.) Villar on this,” he told reporters in mixed Filipino and English.
Mr. Elnas added that two other local candidates will be given show cause orders for their involvement in the raffle activity. He did not identify the candidates, but he noted that one is running for a mayoral post.
“We are looking [at whether] there is an instance of vote buying because someone handed out money and someone accepted it during the event,” he said.
Under Article 12 of the Omnibus Election Code, vote-buying and vote-selling are punishable by imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than six years.
“If the elements of vote buying and vote selling fall into place, then we can file a case,” Mr. Elnas added.
Ms. Villar said that she has yet to receive a show cause order from the poll body.
She, however, explained the raffle event took place on Feb. 9, before the official start of the campaign period on Feb. 11.
“I vehemently deny any allegation or insinuation of vote buying or commission of any election offense for that matter… I am confident that the Comelec will clear my name of these wrongful allegations upon hearing my side on the matter,” Ms. Villar said in a statement on Tuesday. — Adrian H. Halili
This will be the first instance that the election body will issue a show cause order against a senatorial candidate.
Also on Tuesday, the Comelec said it asked Pasig congressional candidate Christian G. Sia to comment on a disqualification case filed over his discriminatory remarks against solo parents.
According to the summons, dated April 21, the Comelec second division has given Mr. Sia five days to respond to an April 16 disqualification petition, filed by the election body’s Task Force on Safeguarding Against Fear and Exclusion in Elections (SAFE).
Task Force SAFE’S petition also comes with a motion to suspend proclamation, should Mr. Sia win in the May 12 polls.
Mr. Sia earlier went viral on social media after making a sexual comment about single moms and sexist remarks about the body size of his assistant.
He later apologized, dismissing his remarks as a joke and vowing that it would not happen again.
The agency had previously issued a show cause order against Mr. Sia asking him to explain his discriminatory statement and argue why he should not be disqualified for potentially violating Comelec’s anti-discrimination rules.
Under its Anti-Discrimination and Fair Campaigning Guidelines, the election body prohibits discrimination against women and gender-based harassment and further extends protection against bullying and discrimination based on gender, ethnicity, age, religion, disability, and other personal characteristics
Separately, Comelec issued a show cause order against reelectionist Cabiao, Nueva Ecija Mayor Ramil B. Rivera following his discriminatory remarks made in separate campaign events.
Among the statements cited by Comelec include Mr. Rivera saying his competition is running with a candidate for council who is allegedly a “gun-for-hire.”
The election body said that Mr. Rivera is ordered to show cause in writing within a non-extendible period of three days from receipt and to explain why a complaint for election offense and/or a petition for disqualification should not be filed against him.
It said that the alleged remarks of both candidates may constitute a breach of Comelec’s anti-discrimination rules, particularly gender-based harassment, and labeling. — Adrian H. Halili