Comelec defends legality of ending Marcoleta probe amid criticisms

By Erika Mae P. Sinaking, Reporter

THE termination of a campaign finance investigation involving a Philippine senator has drawn attention to persistent loopholes and risks to transparency in the electoral system, analysts said over the weekend, as the poll body maintains it is strictly adhering to existing law.

George Erwin M. Garcia, chairman of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), said the poll body acted within the bounds of existing statutes when it cleared Senator Rodante D. Marcoleta of any potential election offense regarding the non-declaration of campaign donors in his 2025 statement of contributions and expenditures.

“The Comelec merely applied the law. We have no call on what the law is and/or should be,” Mr. Garcia told BusinessWorld in a Viber chat. “The law may be harsh but that is the law. And we are not permitted to go beyond it.”

“All our effort must be directed to Congress for the enactment of amendatory laws. In fact, as an initial initiative, our Resolution can be elevated to the Supreme Court to determine if our action is right or wrong for jurisprudence purposes as a useful guidance in future cases of similar import,” he added.

In an en banc resolution last week, the commission voted 6-0-1 to adopt a recommendation to terminate the probe due to a lack of evidence and the decriminalization of specific non-disclosure offenses. Mr. Garcia inhibited himself from the vote to avoid any potential conflict of interest.

Despite clearing the legislator, the poll body confirmed that a preliminary investigation would proceed for three individuals linked to the questioned donations. Mr. Garcia noted this process ensures the “opportunity to be heard.”

Former Comelec Commissioner Luie Tito F. Guia explained that the resolution hinged on Republic Act (RA) No. 7166, which decriminalized a candidate’s failure to disclose contributors.

“That’s the reason why the investigation against Marcoleta was dismissed. However, the fact that the donors will be investigated instead shows that Comelec concluded that there was an unreported election donation, although received before the campaign period,” Mr. Guia told BusinessWorld in a Facebook Messenger chat.

BLIND SPOT
“In any case, the pre-campaign period becomes a blind spot for public oversight because the aspirant (is not yet a candidate) does not have a compulsion to report what he may have received and spent during said period,” he said.

“It is established that candidates already spend the bulk of their election budget before election period. Not knowing how much money candidates spent and where the money comes from, deprives the people of information that may lead to contributors influencing the divisions and actions of public officials. Conflicts of interest are harder to detect,” he added.

Mr. Guia said the penera doctrine correctly interpreted what he called a bad law, Section 13 of RA No. 9369, which effectively allows premature campaigning and therefore needs to be revisited.

Hansley A. Juliano, a political science lecturer at the Ateneo de Manila University, said that the premise for terminating the investigation “screams technicality” and effectively tarnishes the spirit of campaign finance accountability.

“They belie the fact that Mr. Marcoleta’s long public visibility (both as a member of INC and as a representative of 2 separate party-lists) means his finances cannot be purely adjudged as personal funds,” Mr. Juliano said, referring to the Iglesia ni Cristo, a 2-million strong church known for bloc voting.

“Inasmuch as the letter of the law is being invoked, the entire spirit of campaign finance accountability has already been tarnished in this case, as it creates additional loopholes for other future lawmakers,” he added.

Carl Marc L. Ramota, a professor at the University of the Philippines Manila’s Department of Social Sciences, said the move establishes a “dangerous precedent” that raises grave concerns regarding the government’s actual commitment to accountability.

“This duplicity transcends party affiliations, as evidenced by the exoneration of Senator Rodante Marcoleta by the Comelec and the recent pronouncement of the Independent Commission for Infrastructure that absolves former Speaker Martin Romualdez of any liabilities related to the flood control corruption,” he said.

“Not only does it perpetuate double standards… worse, it establishes a dangerous precedent for future elections and emboldens candidates and parties to engage in clandestine dealings with questionable election contributors and contractors,” he added.

This lack of consequence, he said, compromises the integrity of future electoral exercises by allowing potentially illicit financial relationships to persist without legal repercussion.