ARMM polls reset possible
SC lets Congress push postponement plan
By Jomar Canlas and Sammy Martin, Reporters
THE Supreme Court (SC) on Tuesday junked a plea of a Muslim petitioner to stop Congress from proceeding with its plan to postpone elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) set for August 8 and synchronize the balloting with the 2013 mid-term polls.
During an en banc session, SC justices dismissed the petition of lawyer Alex Macalawi of the Integrated Bar of the Philippines-Marawi City Chapter seeking issuance of a temporary restraining order enjoining lawmakers from blocking the conduct of the ARMM elections as scheduled.
According to their spokesman, Jose Midas Marquez, a minute resolution of the court will be issued to throw out the plea for being premature.
The High Tribunal noted that proposed laws in the Senate and the House of Representatives on the reset of the regional balloting have not been passed by Congress and that Macalawi acted too soon.
The SC did not touch the merit of a claim of the petitioner that House Bill 4146 and Senate Bill 2756, which both intend to synchronize the ARMM polls with the mid-term national elections in 2013, violate both the Constitution and Republic Act 9333, which amended RA 9054 (Organic Act of ARMM).
In his plea filed in April, Macalawi said that he represented barangay (village) officials and concerned voters in ARMM.
In the petition, it pointed out that the postponement of the balloting would be a “corrupt customary practice” and so the August 8 schedule set by the Commission on Elections should push through.
Two petitions similar to the Macalawi plea are still alive before the Supreme Court.
Marquez said that the High Tribunal was yet to rule on the pleas filed by Datu Michael Kida of the Maguindanao Federation of Autonomous Irrigators Association and Basari Mapupuno, a former dean of Mindanao State University.
The SC magistrates did not vote on these petitions on Tuesday because Chief Justice Renato Corona had ordered respondents to submit comments during the court’s recess.
Kida and Hadji Muhmina Usman from Tawi-Tawi, lawyer John Anthony Lim from Sulu and barangay officials and residents from Basilan and Lanao del Sur accused the legislators of toying with the date of the ARMM elections.
According to them, the ARMM Organic Act or Republic Act 9504 provided that the regional polls should be held on the second Monday of September.
Republic Act 9333, which was supposed to have amended the Organic Act, was not submitted to a plebiscite as required by law.
A plebiscite is a direct vote where the electorate is asked to accept or reject a certain proposal, such as an amendment to a law.
The Kida group said that an ordinary statute such as RA 9333 cannot amend the much more superior ARMM Organic Act.
Senators Francis Pangilinan, Antonio Trillanes 4th, Sergio Osmeña 3rd, Vicente Sotto 3rd and Teofisto Guingona 3rd also on Tuesday signified their intention to revive the bill seeking the postponement of the ARMM polls and bring an unfavorable report on the measure to the floor for debate.
Hours earlier, Sen. Ferdinand Marcos Jr., the author of Committee Report 42, had sent the document to the archives.
Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri also said earlier that he might spearhead a group of legislators to troop to the Supreme Court to question the legality of the measure seeking to reschedule the regional balloting “should (President Benigno Aquino 3rd) flex his muzzle to force the issue.”
Meanwhile, Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. of the Commission on Elections told senators that if the postponement bill was passed into law, the Comelec would go manual.
Brillantes explained that the poll body had stopped preparing for automated polls when the House of Representatives sought the reset of the regional elections.
He, however, said that it would be “risky” to hold manual elections.
Brillantes added that going manual would negate the successful holding of the country’s first fully computerized elections in 2010.
Rommel C. Lontayao and Claire Capul
Source: http://www.manilatimes.net/news/topstories/armm-polls-reset-possible/
More and more, wedding couples prefer outdoor venues for wedding ceremony and wedding reception. A beautiful setting can really make a wedding reception more memorable for not only the bride and the groom but also for wedding guests attending the ceremony and the reception.
Frequently visited, best wedding venues outside Manila in Pampanga and Subic are listed here including a beach resort which is a semi-private establishment located in the central business district near shopping, business, entertainment, airport and other conveniences of Philippines Clark Freeport Zone.
www.philippinesweddingvenue.com
Philippines Wedding Venues Service Center
Creekside Road corner of Centennial Road,
Central Business District, Clark Freeport Zone,
Pampanga, Philippines 2023
Tel: (045)599-5949 0917-520-4403 0922-870-5177
Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay
Email: Wedding@Yats-International.com
For any assistance in planning and organizing a wedding ceremony, indoor or outdoor garden reception or to find other wedding service providers, Click here to contact us click here
For assistance in hotel and resort bookings in Clark, Pampanga, Philippines, log on to
http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com
To inquire with the highly recommended beach resort hotel in Clark Pampanga visit http://www.ClearwaterPhililippines.com
For more information about Clark, Pampanga, Philippines log on to
http://www.ClarkPhilippines.com