Comelec: No violation in poll donation to Escudero
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has ruled that there was no violation of the election code when Sen. Francis Escudero received a P30-million campaign donation from Lawrence Lubiano, president of Centerways Construction and Development Inc.
In a nine-page resolution released on Wednesday, the Comelec’s political finance and affairs department (PFAD) recommended the termination of its investigation into Escudero’s case, saying there was no evidence to support a complaint that Section 95 (C) of the Omnibus Election Code was violated.
Lubiano also argued he had not participated in any government contract even though he was the president of the construction firm, adding he is “distinct and separate” from Centerways.
Commissioner Rey Bulay told reporters that since the investigation was conducted motu proprio, making it an “ordinary administrative proceeding,” the Comelec en banc will have to adopt the resolution due to a lack of a “contrary opinion.”
“PFAD is Comelec. Comelec is PFAD. It (the resolution) will be adopted,” he said.
Top contractor
The case stemmed from Lubiano’s admission during a House hearing on flood control projects that he donated P30 million to Escudero’s 2022 senatorial campaign, which the senator himself had also confirmed in a press briefing.
The donation was questioned because Lubiano is president of Centerways, which is among the top 15 contractors identified by President Marcos as having cornered most of the flood control works in the country.
The revelation prompted the Comelec to issue a show-cause order on both Lubiano and Escudero.
Section 95 of the election code prohibits campaign contributions from “natural and juridical persons who hold contracts or sub-contracts to supply the government or any of its divisions, subdivisions or instrumentalities, with goods or services or to perform construction or other works.”
According to the PFAD resolution signed by lawyer Ayman Ramil Maquiling, the senator and contractor both denied that the contribution violated the election code, noting it was made by Lubiano “in his personal capacity.”
‘Artificial being’
The PFAD agreed with Lubiano’s arguments that under the Revised Corporation Code, a corporation is an “artificial being” created by law and is vested with a personality separate and distinct from that of its stockholders, directors, and officers.
This meant the personal acts and obligations of a firm’s stockholders, directors, and officers cannot be attributed to the corporation “in the absence of clear and convincing proof of bad faith, fraud, or malice in using the separate and distinct personality of the corporation.”
“A corporation’s separate legal personality may be pierced only when it is clearly used to accomplish fraud, evade lawful obligations, or perpetrate injustice. Mere ownership of shares, managerial control, or interlocking directorships, without more, does not warrant to disregard the distinct legal personality,” the resolution said.
Although he is president of Centerways, Lubiano retains a separate legal personality of his own, according to PFAD, and when he made a campaign donation to Escudero, he “merely exercised a right that is personal to him.”
Ethics complaint
“There is no evidence establishing that the funds used in the contribution originated from Centerways, or that its corporate money crept into the campaign funds of respondent Escudero thru the contribution made by respondent Lubiano,” PFAD said.
Reacting to the Comelec ruling, Escudero said the decision “strengthens [his] faith in our institutions and reinforces [his] commitment to continue serving with integrity and accountability.”
“Since we first ran for public office in 1998, we have worked to consistently comply with our election laws because this is the foundation of public trust,” he said in a statement.
Escudero also faces an ethics complaint at the Senate over the same issue. Private lawyer Marvin Aceron filed the complaint last month, citing Lubiano’s donation which he said essentially came from Centerways Construction, since the company was allegedly 99.331 percent owned by Lubiano.
