GR 52365; (January, 1980) (Digest)
G.R. No. L-52365 January 22, 1980
AMADO F. GADOR, petitioner, vs. COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS AS REPRESENTED BY ITS CHAIRMAN, HON. LEONARDO PEREZ, respondent.
FACTS
Petitioner Amado F. Gador filed a petition for mandamus with a prayer for a writ of preliminary injunction on January 21, 1980, seeking to compel the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to include his name in the official list of candidates for Mayor of Ozamiz City for the January 30, 1980 local elections. Gador alleged that he filed his certificate of candidacy as an independent candidate with the Election Registrar of Ozamiz City on January 7, 1980. His filing was based on a news item in the Bulletin Today newspaper’s January 6 issue, which he interpreted as allowing a possible extension of the filing period.
The petitioner further stated that he wired the COMELEC Chairman on January 8, 1980, informing him of the filing and requesting approval. On January 11, 1980, he caused the Election Registrar to send another wire reiterating the filing and inquiring about his candidacy’s status. Gador expressed apprehension that, following the President’s denial of a COMELEC resolution to extend the filing deadline, his name would be excluded from the printed ballots. He argued that for reasons of fairness, equity, and public interest, the COMELEC should be commanded to include him.
ISSUE
The sole issue is whether the certificate of candidacy filed by petitioner Gador on January 7, 1980, is valid and enforceable.
RULING
The Supreme Court dismissed the petition for mandamus for lack of merit. The legal logic is anchored on the mandatory and jurisdictional nature of statutory filing deadlines for certificates of candidacy. The governing law, Section 7 of Batasang Pambansa Bilang 52, explicitly stipulated that the sworn certificate of candidacy “shall be filed in triplicate not later than January 4, 1980.” The Court emphasized that this deadline is not a mere technicality but a substantive requirement essential to the orderly conduct of elections.
The petitioner admitted the President did not extend the filing period. Consequently, his act of filing on January 7, 1980, was indisputably three days beyond the statutory cutoff. The Court held that a certificate filed after a fixed statutory deadline is void and produces no legal effect. Neither the COMELEC nor the Supreme Court has the power to waive or extend such a mandatory period based on equity or claims of fairness when the law is clear. The Court noted the proximity of the election—only eight days away—and ruled that immediate resolution was necessary, ultimately finding no legal basis to compel the COMELEC to recognize a void candidacy.