Mitra seeks reversal of Comelec disqualification

Palawan Second District Rep. Abraham Khalil Mitra on Monday appealed to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to reverse its earlier ruling disqualifying him from participating in his province's gubernatorial race in May. The Comelec First Division disqualified Mitra, a Liberal Party gubernatorial bet, for his failure to establish at least one year of residency in the province before the May polls – a violation of the Local Government Code. It also said Mitra’s failure to comply with the residency requirement made him unqualified to run for office in the province. Mitra told reporters that he is a registered voter in Palawan and his registration was never questioned until he had to file his certificate of candidacy. "This is part of my congressional district, and I've been serving as congressman for the last nine years," he said. The lawmaker used to be a resident of Puerto Princesa, which ceased to be a component city of Palawan in 2007. In 2009, he requested for a transfer of his records from Puerto Princesa to Aborlan, Palawan where he supposedly has a farm, a farmhouse, and a cock farm. The Comelec First Division, however, said that Mitra could not prove that he really was an Aborlan resident. Mitra's lawyer Sixto Brillantes said in the motion for reconsideration that the investigation process was "facilitated" and "rushed." "Premised on such above-mentioned mega summary process, a division of this honorable commission comes up with its verdict - undeniably the exercise of a most awesome power, to abruptly determine the fate of an aspiring candidate's COC," he said. Mitra said they were not even able to examine the witnesses and all the evidence were just documents submitted the poll body. Once appealed, the decision can still be overturned by the Comelec en banc and the Supreme Court. - Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK, GMANews.TV