G.R. No. 207900 , April 22, 2014
Mayor Gamal S. Hayudini v. Commission on Elections and Mustapha J. Omar

FACTS

Petitioner Gamal S. Hayudini filed his Certificate of Candidacy (CoC) for Mayor of South Ubian, Tawi-Tawi on October 5, 2012. On October 15, 2012, respondent Mustapha J. Omar filed a petition (SPA No. 13-106(DC)(F)) to deny due course or cancel Hayudini’s CoC, alleging false representation regarding his residency. The COMELEC First Division dismissed this petition on January 31, 2013, for lack of substantial evidence. Meanwhile, on November 30, 2012, Hayudini filed a Petition for Inclusion in the Permanent List of Voters in Barangay Bintawlan, South Ubian, which was granted by the Municipal Circuit Trial Court (MCTC) on January 31, 2013. However, the Regional Trial Court (RTC) reversed the MCTC ruling on March 8, 2013, and ordered the deletion of Hayudini’s name from the voter’s list. Omar then filed a second petition (SPA No. 13-249(DC)(F)) on March 26, 2013, to cancel Hayudini’s CoC based on this supervening event. Hayudini’s appeal of the RTC decision was denied by the Court of Appeals on April 17, 2013. Hayudini won the mayoralty election on May 13, 2013, was proclaimed, and took his oath. On June 20, 2013, the COMELEC Second Division granted Omar’s second petition and cancelled Hayudini’s CoC. The COMELEC En Banc denied Hayudini’s motion for reconsideration on July 10, 2013, declared his proclamation null and void, and ordered the proclamation of Salma A. Omar as the duly-elected Mayor. Hayudini filed the instant petition for certiorari and prohibition.

ISSUE

Whether the COMELEC committed grave abuse of discretion amounting to lack or excess of jurisdiction in: (1) admitting and granting Omar’s belated second petition despite procedural defects; (2) revisiting and modifying the final resolution of the First Division; (3) cancelling Hayudini’s CoC and declaring his proclamation void; and (4) decreeing the proclamation of Salma A. Omar.

RULING

The Supreme Court dismissed the petition, finding no grave abuse of discretion by the COMELEC.
1. The COMELEC did not commit grave abuse of discretion in liberally construing its procedural rules to admit Omar’s second petition, notwithstanding that it was filed beyond the period prescribed under its rules and lacked strict compliance with service requirements. The Court upheld the COMELEC’s authority to suspend its rules in the interest of justice and to ensure the speedy disposition of election matters imbued with public interest. The RTC decision, which became final and executory, constituted a legitimate supervening event that warranted the re-opening of the issue of Hayudini’s residency qualification.
2. The COMELEC did not commit grave abuse of discretion in cancelling Hayudini’s CoC based on the supervening RTC decision. The First Division’s earlier dismissal was based on the evidence available at that time. The subsequent final RTC ruling, which deleted Hayudini from the voter’s list, provided conclusive evidence that he made a false material representation in his CoC regarding his residency. A candidate’s inclusion in the voter’s list is a condition sine qua non for residency qualification under the Local Government Code. The cancellation rendered his CoC void ab initio.
3. Consequently, the COMELEC did not commit grave abuse of discretion in declaring Hayudini’s proclamation null and void. Since his CoC was cancelled for false material representation, he was never a valid candidate from the beginning. Votes cast for him were considered stray. Following the doctrine in Aratea v. COMELEC and similar cases, the qualified candidate who obtained the highest number of votes, Salma A. Omar, was rightly proclaimed as the duly-elected Mayor.