SASMUAN, Pampanga – The Supreme Court affirmed it and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc ordered it, but law enforcers have continued to ignore it.
This was the lament of Mozart Panlaqui, defeated mayoral candidate in this town in the 2007 polls, as the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) in this province failed as of yesterday to reinforce a Comelec en banc order dated last Sept. 8 to unseat “immediately” Mayor Nardo Velasco and install Vice Mayor Fernando Baltazar Jr. as acting mayor.
“The case has been there even before the 2007 elections and now that it has been decided upon with finality, authorized people seem to be ignoring it,” said Panlaqui who has also filed a petition before the Supreme Court asking for him to assume the mayoral post since the cancellation of Velasco’s mayoral candidacy in 2007 made him the only mayoral candidate in the last polls.
In an order dated last Sept. 8, the Comelec en banc told Velasco “to immediately and peacefully vacate the office of the mayor, Municipality of Sasmuan, Pampanga.”
“We declare that there is no more legal impediment or obstacle to the implementation (of an earlier decision for the ouster of Velasco), “ the poll body said in its four-page decision signed by Chairman Jose Melo and Commissioners Rene Sarmiento, Nicodemo Ferrer, Lucenito Tagle, Armando Velasco, and Elias Eusoph.
The verdict also ordered Baltazar, who was Panlaqui’s running mate, to assume the mayoral post and for senior municipal councilor Anastacio Agapito Jr. to assume the post of vice mayor.
The Comelec specifically ordered the DILG to “immediately” enforce its decision.
Panlaqui said that the DILG should have immediately complied with the Comelec’s order by installing Baltazar as acting mayor pending the resolution of his appeal to be named mayor.
“My petition is on grounds that Velasco was never a candidate from the very beginning since he did not possess the local residency requirement for a local candidate. Thus, I was the only mayoral candidate in the 2007 polls,” he said.
Provincial DILG chief Angelica Blanco could not be reached, but her staff who identified herself as Irene Bacani said that her boss “was just being careful” and wanted the order to come from Interior and Local Governments Sec. Ronaldo Puno before she would implement the ouster of Velasco.
Velasco had resided in the US and returned to this town less than a year before the elections, contrary to the requirement of the law for one year residency of a candidate in a locality.
Even before the elections in 2007, the local Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) already cited this as reason for disqualifying Velasco, but a municipal court overturned this to enable him to pursue his mayoral bid.
Velasco, who was candidate of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), won and was proclaimed amid protests from his only rival Panlaqui who was candidate of the Kabalikat ng Mamamayang Pilipino (Kampi party).
This town is within Pampanga’s second district which includes nearby Lubao where Pres. Arroyo is registered voter.
The Comelec’s final verdict last Sept. 8 recalled that in July, 2007, its second division had already issued a resolution affirming an earlier decision of the local Board of Election Inspectors declaring Velasco as lacking the qualifications for a mayoral candidate and declaring that “thus his proclamation is deemed null and void.”
On Oct. 15, 2007, the Comelec en banc junked Velasco’s appeal for reconsideration of the decision of the second division, but his ouster was prevented by his appeal to the Supreme Court.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court eventually dismissed Velasco’s appeal for lack of merit and lifted its status quo order that prevented his ouster from mayoral post.
But because of the failure of government agencies to enforce the ouster of Velasco, Panlaqui filed last Aug. 5 before the Comelec en banc a petition “to direct Velasco to immediately vacate the position of mayor” and “to cease and desist from performing the functions of the said office/position.”
The latest order asking that the earlier order be enforced, however, remained ignored as of press time.
This was the lament of Mozart Panlaqui, defeated mayoral candidate in this town in the 2007 polls, as the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) in this province failed as of yesterday to reinforce a Comelec en banc order dated last Sept. 8 to unseat “immediately” Mayor Nardo Velasco and install Vice Mayor Fernando Baltazar Jr. as acting mayor.
“The case has been there even before the 2007 elections and now that it has been decided upon with finality, authorized people seem to be ignoring it,” said Panlaqui who has also filed a petition before the Supreme Court asking for him to assume the mayoral post since the cancellation of Velasco’s mayoral candidacy in 2007 made him the only mayoral candidate in the last polls.
In an order dated last Sept. 8, the Comelec en banc told Velasco “to immediately and peacefully vacate the office of the mayor, Municipality of Sasmuan, Pampanga.”
“We declare that there is no more legal impediment or obstacle to the implementation (of an earlier decision for the ouster of Velasco), “ the poll body said in its four-page decision signed by Chairman Jose Melo and Commissioners Rene Sarmiento, Nicodemo Ferrer, Lucenito Tagle, Armando Velasco, and Elias Eusoph.
The verdict also ordered Baltazar, who was Panlaqui’s running mate, to assume the mayoral post and for senior municipal councilor Anastacio Agapito Jr. to assume the post of vice mayor.
The Comelec specifically ordered the DILG to “immediately” enforce its decision.
Panlaqui said that the DILG should have immediately complied with the Comelec’s order by installing Baltazar as acting mayor pending the resolution of his appeal to be named mayor.
“My petition is on grounds that Velasco was never a candidate from the very beginning since he did not possess the local residency requirement for a local candidate. Thus, I was the only mayoral candidate in the 2007 polls,” he said.
Provincial DILG chief Angelica Blanco could not be reached, but her staff who identified herself as Irene Bacani said that her boss “was just being careful” and wanted the order to come from Interior and Local Governments Sec. Ronaldo Puno before she would implement the ouster of Velasco.
Velasco had resided in the US and returned to this town less than a year before the elections, contrary to the requirement of the law for one year residency of a candidate in a locality.
Even before the elections in 2007, the local Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) already cited this as reason for disqualifying Velasco, but a municipal court overturned this to enable him to pursue his mayoral bid.
Velasco, who was candidate of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), won and was proclaimed amid protests from his only rival Panlaqui who was candidate of the Kabalikat ng Mamamayang Pilipino (Kampi party).
This town is within Pampanga’s second district which includes nearby Lubao where Pres. Arroyo is registered voter.
The Comelec’s final verdict last Sept. 8 recalled that in July, 2007, its second division had already issued a resolution affirming an earlier decision of the local Board of Election Inspectors declaring Velasco as lacking the qualifications for a mayoral candidate and declaring that “thus his proclamation is deemed null and void.”
On Oct. 15, 2007, the Comelec en banc junked Velasco’s appeal for reconsideration of the decision of the second division, but his ouster was prevented by his appeal to the Supreme Court.
Earlier this year, the Supreme Court eventually dismissed Velasco’s appeal for lack of merit and lifted its status quo order that prevented his ouster from mayoral post.
But because of the failure of government agencies to enforce the ouster of Velasco, Panlaqui filed last Aug. 5 before the Comelec en banc a petition “to direct Velasco to immediately vacate the position of mayor” and “to cease and desist from performing the functions of the said office/position.”
The latest order asking that the earlier order be enforced, however, remained ignored as of press time.
