196 - Lokin Vs COMELEC

Title Lokin vs COMELEC, Gr. No.
179431-
32
Facts  CIBAC was one of the
organized groups duly registered
under the party-list system
representation
 CIBAC, through its President,
Joel Villanueva, submitted a list
of 5 nominees from which its
representatives would be chosen
should CIBAC obtain the
required number of qualifying
votes. Among the nominees is
Atty Luis Lokin. The list of
nominees was later published in
2 newspapers of general
circulation: PH Star News & PH
Daily Inquirer
 CIBAC filed a certificate of
nomination, substitution and
amendment of the list of
nominees whereby it withdrew
the nominations of Lokin and 2
others. Thus, the amended list
nominees includes: Villanueva,
Cruz-Gonzales, Borje
 However, CIBAC filed with
COMELEC En Banc sitting as the
National Board of Canvassers a
motion seeking the proclamation
of Lokin as its 2nd nominee and
further asserting that CIBAC was
clearly entitled to a 2nd seat and
Lokin to proclamation. But
COMELEC failed to act on the
matter.
 Villanueva filed a petition to
confirm the certificate of
nomination, substitution and
amendment of the list of
nominees of CIBAC
 COMELEC En Banc: approved
the withdrawal of the
nomination of Atty. Lokin and 2
others and affirmed the
amended list of nominees of
CIBAC
Issue W/N COMELEC committed grave
abuse of discretion amounting to
lack/excess of jurisdiction in
approving the withdrawal of the
nominees of CIBAC and allowing the
amendment of the list of nominees
of CIBAC? YES.
SC As a rule, the Legislature can
Ruling delegate to executive officers and
administrative boards the authority
to adopt and promulgate IRRs. The
function of promulgating IRRs may
be legitimately exercised only for
the purpose of carrying out the
provisions of a law.
The COMELEC is constitutionally

mandated to enforce and administer
all laws and regulations relative to
the conduct of an election, a
plebiscite, an initiative, a
referendum, and a recall. It is also
charged to promulgate IRRs
implementing the provisions of the
Omnibus Election Code or other
laws that the COMELEC enforces
and administers.
The delegated authority must be

properly exercised. This simply
means that the resulting IRRs must
not be ultra vires as to be issued
beyond the limits of the authority
conferred. It is basic that an
administrative agency cannot
amend an act of Congress, for
administrative IRRs are solely
intended to carry out, not to
supplant or to modify, the law.
Section 8, RA 7941 reads:
Section 8. Nomination of Party-List

Representatives.-Each registered
party, organization or coalition shall
submit to the COMELEC not later
that forty-five (45) days before the
election a list of names, not less
than five (5), from which party-list
representatives shall be chosen in
case it obtains the required number
of votes.
A person may be nominated in one

(1) list only. Only persons who have
given their consent in writing may
be named in the list. The list shall
not include any candidate of any
elective office or a person who has
lost his bid for an elective office in
the immediately preceding
election. No change of names or
alteration of the order of nominees
shall be allowed after the same shall
have been submitted to the
COMELEC except in cases where the
nominee dies, or withdraws in
writing his nomination, becomes
incapacitated in which case the
name of the substitute nominee
shall be placed last in the list.
Incumbent sectoral representatives
in the House of Representatives
who are nominated in the party-list
system shall not be considered
resigned.
The provision is clear. The

Legislature deprived the party-list
organization of the right to change
its nominees or to alter the order of
nominees once the list is submitted
to the COMELEC, except when: (a)
the nominee dies; (b) the nominee
withdraws in writing his nomination;
or (c) the nominee becomes
incapacitated. The provision must
be read literally because its
language is plain and free from
ambiguity, and expresses a single,
definite, and sensible meaning.
Section 8 does not unduly deprive

the party-list organization of its right
to choose its nominees, but merely
divests it of the right to change its
nominees or to alter the order in the
list of its nominees’ names after
submission of the list to the
COMELEC.
The COMELEC can rightly presume

from the submission of the list that
the list reflects the true will of the
party-list organization. The
COMELEC will not concern itself with
whether or not the list contains the
real intended nominees of the
party-list organization, but will only
determine whether the nominees
pass all the requirements prescribed
by the law and whether or not the
nominees possess all the
qualifications and none of the
disqualifications. In contrast,
allowing the party-list organization
to change its nominees through
withdrawal of their nominations, or
to alter the order of the nominations
after the submission of the list of
nominees circumvents the voters’
demand for transparency.
Section 8 of R.A. No. 7941

enumerates only three instances in
which the party-list organization can
substitute another person in place
of the nominee whose name has
been submitted to the COMELEC,
namely: (a) when the nominee dies;
(b) when the nominee withdraws in
writing his nomination; and (c)
when the nominee becomes
incapacitated.
The enumeration is exclusive, for,

necessarily, the general rule applies
to all cases not falling under any of
the three exceptions.
Thus, Section 13 of Resolution No.

7804 expanded the exceptions
under Sec. 8, RA 7941.
Section 13 of Resolution No.

7804 states:
Section 13. Substitution of

nominees. – A party-list nominee
may be substituted only when
he dies, or his nomination is
withdrawn by the party, or he
becomes incapacitated to
continue as such, or he
withdraws his acceptance to a
nomination. In any of these cases,
the name of the substitute nominee
shall be placed last in the list of
nominees.
No substitution shall be allowed by

reason of withdrawal after the polls.
Unlike Section 8 of R.A. No. 7941,
the foregoing regulation provides
four instances, the fourth being
when the "nomination is withdrawn
by the party."
Lokin insists that the COMELEC

gravely abused its discretion in
expanding to four the three
statutory grounds for substituting a
nominee. We agree with Lokin.
COMELEC has neither the authority

nor the license to expand, extend,
or add anything to the law it seeks
to implement thereby. The IRRs the
COMELEC issues for that purpose
should always accord with the law
to be implemented, and should not
override, supplant, or modify the
law. It is basic that the IRRs should
remain consistent with the law they
intend to carry out.
The COMELEC explains that Section

13 of Resolution No. 7804 has
added nothing to Section 8 of R.A.
No. 7941, because it has merely
reworded and rephrased the
statutory provision’s phraseology.
To reword means to alter the
wording of or to restate in other
words; to rephrase is to phrase
anew or in a new form. Both terms
signify that the meaning of the
original word or phrase is not
altered.
However, the COMELEC did not

merely reword or rephrase the text
of Section 8 of R.A. No. 7941,
because it established an entirely
new ground not found in the text of
the provision. The insertion of the
new ground was invalid.
Considering that Section 13 of

Resolution No. 7804 was invalid,
CIBAC’s withdrawal of its
nomination of Lokin and 2 others
and its substitution of them with
new nominees were also invalid and
ineffectual. Thereby, the COMELEC
acted without jurisdiction, having
relied on the invalidly issued Section
13 of Resolution No. 7804 to
support its action.

196 - Lokin Vs COMELEC

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Title Lokin vs COMELEC, Gr. No.

The COMELEC is constitutionally

The delegated authority must be

Section 8, RA 7941 reads:

Section 8. Nomination of Party-List

A person may be nominated in one

The provision is clear. The

Section 8 does not unduly deprive

The COMELEC can rightly presume

Section 8 of R.A. No. 7941

The enumeration is exclusive, for,

Thus, Section 13 of Resolution No.

Section 13 of Resolution No.

Section 13. Substitution of

No substitution shall be allowed by

Lokin insists that the COMELEC

COMELEC has neither the authority

The COMELEC explains that Section

However, the COMELEC did not

Considering that Section 13 of

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