The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Friday declared the disqualification of former lawmaker Edgar “Egay” Erice as “final and executory.”

Erice is barred from running for a House of Representatives seat in the May 2025 midterm elections.

The Comelec disqualified Erice for "deliberately spreading false and alarming reports" and circulating "misleading messages to disrupt the electoral process and cause confusion among voters."

The poll body announced that its 27 December 2024 resolution, which affirmed the Comelec Second Division's ruling against Erice, became final after the Supreme Court did not issue a temporary restraining order.

As a result of the en banc decision, Erice’s name will not be included in the official ballot. The printing of official ballots for the 2025 elections is scheduled to begin on 6 January.

In August, Erice filed graft charges against Comelec Chair George Garcia and seven other Comelec officials over the allegedly anomalous awarding of an P18-billion contract to Miru Systems as the service provider for next year’s polls.

Erice also accused a poll official of accepting bribe money from South Korean-based banks through multiple offshore accounts.

Garcia has denied all allegations and requested the National Bureau of Investigation, Department of Justice, and Anti-Money Laundering Council to investigate the alleged dissemination of false information against him.