The Commission on Elections (Comelec) Second Division dismissed the petition to cancel the certificate of candidacy (COC) of broadcaster and 2022 senatorial Raffy Tulfo.
This is what acting Comelec chair Socorro Inting shared on Wednesday regarding the petition filed against Tulfo – which is number one in the latest electoral survey released by Pulse Asia.
In November 2021, Julieta Licup Pearson filed a petition to cancel Raffy Tulfo’s candidacy. She said there was a misrepresentation in Tulfo’s certificate of candidacy (COC) when he did not state her as his spouse.
She insisted that she and Tulfo were married in October 1982 in Capaz, Tarlac. Their marriage supposedly was never nullified.
“This misrepresentation in his certificate of candidacy was done by him fully aware that he is not legally married to his declared wife in the COC, Jocelyn Pua Tulfo,” the petition dated October 25 read. Pearson is currently a party-list representative in Congress.
Comelec division rejects petition to cancel Raffy Tulfo’s candidacy
In 2019, Raffy Tulfo admitted that he had a child with Pearson.
“Noong ako po ay isa pa lang struggling broadcaster o naghihikahos na mamamahayag, maraming taon nang nakararaan, I reached out to my daughter with her, at nagkita po kami ng aking anak sa kanya at ako po’y nagbigay ng tulong pinansiyal at mga regalo,” he had said.
Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez had earlier said that only “material misrepresentation” was the reason for canceling the COC of someone wishing to run in the election. In accordance with Article IX, Section 78 of the Omnibus Election Code:
“A verified petition seeking to deny due course or to cancel a certificate of candidacy may be filed by the person exclusively on the ground that any material representation contained therein as required under Section 74 hereof is false. The petition may be filed at any time not later than twenty-five days from the time of the filing of the certificate of candidacy and shall be decided, after due notice and hearing, not later than fifteen days before the election.”
The media is still asking for an actual copy of the Comelec resolution when it comes to the said case.
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