Laoag City Commission on Elections (Comelec) supervisor Atty. Fidel Gines has clarified the effects of filing certificates of candidacy (COC) for appointed Laoag City Councilors Conchita D. Blanco and Edison Chua, who are both running for council seats under Section 4 of Comelec Resolution 7799. In the said section of the Comelec resolution it states that: a) Any person holding public appointive office or position including active members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and other officers and employees in government-owned or controlled corporations, shall be considered ipso facto resigned from his office upon the filing of his certificate of candidacy; b) Any elective official whether national or local, running for any office shall not be considered resigned upon the filing of certificate of candidacy. In view of this, Gines explained that Blanco and Chua are not covered by this regulation since both had been appointed to elective posts to take over the unexpired terms of the late Councilor Ruben P. Blanco and Vice Mayor Jimmy O. Chua, respectively. He also cited the case of Laoag City community affairs officer Joseph H. Tamayo who filed his COC for the city council which automatically made him resign. Gines also stated that incumbent officials running for re-election or other elective posts are not considered resigned from their elective posts. He cited in particular Laoag Councilor Primo Jay S. Ramos, who after serving as council member for three straight terms and thereby prohibited by law to run for another term and who is now running for the city’s vice mayoralty post. Reacting to this, Blanco thanked the city Comelec office for clarifying the meaning and effects of the said Comelec resolution for her. “That the public might think I was disqualified, but no as Atty. Gines has explained. I’m running for city councilor,” Blanco said. Dominic B. dela Cruz
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