TAPE President and CEO Romeo Jalosjos Jr. has taken his opposition against his political rival for the congressman position in the first district of Zamboanga del Norte to the Supreme Court. Jalosjos raised concerns about the legitimacy of the 19th Congress and filed a comment and opposition to the motion to proclaim his opponent, Roberto Uy Jr., as the winner of the May 2022 election.
On October 6, Jalosjos submitted his comment and opposition to the Supreme Court, countering Uy’s motion for the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to proclaim him as the winner. The Supreme Court had previously nullified Jalosjos’ proclamation and ordered the Comelec to proclaim Uy instead.
Jalosjos is challenging the Supreme Court’s decision, arguing that proclaiming Uy as the winner would create an absurd situation since the case is still pending before the Supreme Court. He also claimed that it would harm his ability to file a Motion for Reconsideration if Uy is already proclaimed.
Jalosjos maintained that the Comelec had already proclaimed him as the winner and that he had taken his oath of office as the first district representative of Zamboanga City. He argued that the Supreme Court has no jurisdiction over the case, as it belongs to the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET), which is the sole judge of all contests related to the election and qualifications of its members.
However, the Supreme Court stated that the HRET does not have jurisdiction over the case because Jalosjos did not fulfill the requisites necessary for the tribunal to assume jurisdiction. According to the SC Public Information Office, these requisites are a valid proclamation, a proper oath, and assumption of office. The court pointed out that Jalosjos had not taken an oath before the Speaker of the House in open session and had not assumed office, thus barring the HRET from taking jurisdiction.
Jalosjos disagreed with the Supreme Court’s decision, arguing that he had fulfilled the necessary requisites. He emphasized that requiring an oath before the Speaker of the House in open session for a proclaimed candidate to become a member of the House would lead to absurdity, as the Speaker must be elected by majority votes of its members.
Jalosjos asserted that the Supreme Court ruling raises a constitutional issue regarding the terms and legitimacy of the 19th Congress and its members. He argued that members of the House of Representatives must have already taken an oath of office on June 30 to be able to validly cast their votes for the election of the Speaker on the 4th Monday of July.
In his comment and opposition, Jalosjos mentioned that even Speaker of the House Ferdinand Martin Romualdez took his oath before a barangay captain on June 15, 2022. He suggested that if the ruling was applied to Romualdez, his oath would be invalid, questioning his ability to perform his functions and be elected as Speaker.
Jalosjos concluded by requesting the Supreme Court to deny Uy’s motion for immediate proclamation and to grant the motion to set the case for oral arguments.
The outcome of this legal battle will determine the rightful representative of the first district of Zamboanga del Norte and may have implications for the terms and legitimacy of the 19th Congress and its members.
