The government on Thursday asked the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to cancel the registration in the party-List system of Gabriela Women’s Party for violations of the election law and the Constitution.
In a 13-page verified petition, the National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-ELCAC), also named Gabriela Inc. and General Assembly of Women for Reforms (GAWR) as respondents.
The petitioner said the respondents have supposedly violated Constitution and Comelec Rules of Procedure for allegedly accepting support from foreign sources.
“Respondents’ registration and accreditation should be cancelled for receiving support from a foreign government, in violation of Section 2 (5), Article IX, Par. C of the Constitution and Section 8, (d), Rule 32 of the Comelec Rules of Procedure,” the NTF-ELCAC said.
The law states: “Register, after sufficient publication, political parties, organizations, or coalitions which, in addition to other requirements, must present their platform or program of government; and accredit citizens’ arms of the Commission on Elections. Religious denominations and sects shall not be registered. Those which seek to achieve their goals through violence or unlawful means, or refuse to uphold and adhere to this Constitution, or which are supported by any foreign government shall likewise be refused registration.”
NTF-ELCAC also cited Comelec Rules of Procedure, which states: “Section 8. Cancellation of Registration - d) the said political party, coalition of political parties or organization has become a religious sect or denomination, is pursuing its goals thru violence or other unlawful means, is refusing to adhere to or uphold the Constitution of the Philippines, or is receiving support from any foreign government.”
Foreign funding
The case stemmed from the document entitled “Overview of Non-Government Actors in the Philippines-Program 2017-2021,” shared by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Belgium to Philippine delegates during a meeting in Brussels last February.
“Said document revealed that the Belgian Government, through its accredited non-government organizations (NGOs) particularly G3W, also known as Viva Salud, funded the respondents,” the petitioner said.
It also cited the report of the Anti-Money Laundering Council, that from 2012 to 2016, the respondents received more or less PHP22.7 million.
“Respondent’s act is a blatant and direct violation of the Constitution which prohibits, in no uncertain and equivocal trend and qualifications, political parties, coalitions of political parties or organizations from receiving support from any foreign government,” the NTF-ELCAC added.
Pursuing goals thru violence
The petition added that respondents are pursuing their goals through violence in violation of Section 8, (d), Rule 32 Comelec Rules of Procedure Section 6 (2) of Republic Act No. 7941, otherwise known as the “Partylist System Act and Section 61, Article VIII of Batas Pambansa Blg. 881 or the Omnibus Election Code (OEC).
Under said Section of the OEC, it states that “No religious sect shall be registered as a political party and no political party which seeks to achieve its goal through violence shall be entitled accreditation.”
At the same time, the petition cited the sworn statement of Edison Coloma Villanueva attesting to the fact that the Gabriela Party-List supports the outlawed advocacies and principle of the NPA (New People’s Army).
“What is more revealing, Villanueva, in his salaysay (testimony), states that Gabriela utilizes its funds for the procurement of firearms and ammunition’s for the CPP (Communist Party of the Philippines)-NPA.,” it said.
Violation of Constitution
“Since the CPP-NPA has been declared as a Terrorist Organization, through Proclamation No. 374, s. 2017 under Republic Act No. 10168, and having also been declared as a Terrorist Organization by the United States of America through Public Notice 9768 and the European Union Council Decision, Common Foreign and Security Policy dated August 4, 2017, respondents acts of helping and supporting a declared terrorist organization is violative of the Constitution, and are clearly advocating and or using violence and other unlawful means to advance their goals,” the petition added.
The NTF-ELCAC was created pursuant to Executive Order No. 70, series of 2018 providing for a whole-of-nation approach defeating local communist terrorist groups, and such other groups who advocate, use, or support the use of violence or other unlawful means to advance their goals.
https://www.pna.gov.ph/articles/1069487
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