Gabriela to get last of 64 allotted party list seats
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Sunday announced that Gabriela party list will get the 64th and final seat in the House of Representatives, with first nominee Sarah Elago taking the position.
“If we are not mistaken, the Comelec will proclaim former Congresswoman representative Elago, who is the number one nominee of Gabriela party list,” Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said in a radio interview with DZMM.
“It’s good that we announce this to dispel any doubts,” he added.
The poll body chief said this was in compliance with a Comelec resolution increasing the number of party list seats in the House of Representatives from 63 to 64.
He said he wrote to the Comelec en banc, stressing that the allocation in the lower chamber must be 64 in accordance with the 1987 Constitution.
Duterte Youth’s case
But there are three other vacant party list seats. When asked if the declaration of the winning 64th seat effectively canceled the registration of the Duterte Youth Party list, Garcia said “This is a separate matter.”
“It appears there are still four seats [to be filled]. The 64th seat, and the three seats that may be vacated by the said party list because our decision is not yet final,” he said, referring to the cancellation of Duterte Youth’s registration.
On June 18, the 2nd Division of the poll body cancelled Duterte Youth’s registration based on a 2019 petition by other youth leaders citing lack of publication of the party list’s registration and of a hearing on its accreditation. The Comelec en banc upheld that decision on Aug. 29.
Duterte Youth ranked second in the party list race during the May midterm polls, which means it would have secured three seats in the House.
Gabriela had failed to get a House seat after ranking 55th in the May polls, with 63 seats distributed to the top 54 party lists. But soon there were calls for Gabriela’s proclamation after the poll body’s 2nd division canceled the registration of Duterte Youth.
Garcia said the cancellation of Duterte Youth’s registration will become final and executory after 30 days, without any restraining order from the Supreme Court by then.
Duterte Youth on Sept. 3 questioned the Comelec’s Aug. 29 decision before the high court.
House consent
Regarding the 64th seat, Garcia explained that allotting only 63 seats would constitute less than 20 percent of the House seats.
Republic Act No. 7941 or the Party list System Act mandates that party list representatives should comprise 20 percent of all House members.
The law is in line with Section 5(2) of the 1987 Constitution regarding the Legislative Department.
He noted that while 64 seats constituted more than 20 percent, this did not violate that constitutional provision stating that “party list representatives shall constitute twenty per centum of the total number of representatives including those under the party list.”
He added that the Comelec had also sought the consent of the House in proclaiming the 64th seat.
“The House secretary-general said the chamber’s authority is only ministerial, meaning it will simply accept whoever the Comelec proclaims,” Garcia said.
“It is the Comelec that has the discretion as to who should be proclaimed in accordance with the Constitution,” he added, citing the chamber’s opinion.
No formal ceremony
Garcia said there may be no formal ceremony on the proclamation, since the winning representative can simply obtain a certificate of proclamation from the Comelec.
He cited as an example the proclamation of Akbayan as the winning party list in the 2022 general elections, after the poll body canceled the registration of An Waray Party list.
Gabriela Women’s Party, an alliance of Filipino women activists, has repeatedly urged the Comelec to proclaim Gabriela Party list, saying this is a “crucial step in ensuring that the voice of the marginalized is heard and represented in a legislature compromised by vested interests.”
Gabriela said the Comelec’s announcement regarding that party list “comes at an especially crucial point in the fight against corruption, when the people need genuine representation in a government dominated by big businesses and political dynasties.”
