Duterte Youth disqualification finalized

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) en banc has upheld the cancellation of the registration of the Duterte Youth Party List, citing multiple violations of election laws and procedures.

In a resolution issued on Friday, the four-member Comelec en banc denied the motion for reconsideration filed by the party-list organization, formally known as Duty of Energize the Republic through the Enlightenment of the Youth.

The resolution affirmed an earlier ruling by the Comelec’s Second Division, which had found the group’s registration to be “void ab initio,” or invalid from the beginning.

The decision was signed by Comelec chairperson George Erwin Garcia and commissioners Aimee Ferolino, Ernesto Ferdinand Maceda, Rey Bulay, Nelson Celis, Maria Norina Tangaro-Casingal and Noli R. Pipo.

The Second Division members who issued the initial ruling were Reeya Beatrice Magtalas, Abigail Ale, Raainah Punzalan and Aunell Ross Angkos.

In a statement, the poll body’s Second Division determined that the Duterte Youth Party List failed to meet fundamental jurisdictional requirements, including proper publication and a public hearing, which are mandated by the Constitution and Comelec Resolution No. 9366.

Beyond the procedural issues, the division’s ruling also cited several other reasons for the cancellation. It found that the party-list group made untruthful statements in its petition, particularly regarding the eligibility of its nominees.

The resolution also stated that the organization lacked a genuine intention to represent the sector it claimed to serve and that its actions prevented a faithful determination of the electorate’s will.

Additionally, the Comelec found that the group advocated for violence or unlawful means to achieve its goals and was an adjunct or was funded or assisted by the National Youth Commission.

The poll body said that the Duterte Youth Party List violated other laws and regulations related to elections and that its petition was filed to “put the election process in mockery or disrepute.