ZAMBOANGA CITY (Mindanao Examiner / July 16, 2012) – Local Congresswoman Maria Isabelle Salazar has questioned the registration of former Zamboanga del Norte lawmaker Romeo Jalosjos, Sr. as a legitimate voter in Zamboanga City.
Salazar, also the House Deputy Speaker, said Jalosjos is not qualified to vote in Zamboanga City where he is eyeing to run as mayor in next year’s elections.
Salazar, a member of the Liberal Party, is running also for the same mayoralty post and said the law prohibits Jalosjos, who was convicted by a court of raping a minor more than a decade ago.
She called on the locals to remain vigilant in the enforcement of laws “to ensure that no person, regardless of his wealth and influence, gain any undue advantage at the expense of ordinary citizens”.
Salazar filed her opposition to Jalosjos’ registration with the Commission on Elections in Zamboanga City.
“The facts speak for themselves. Contrary to purported beliefs and widespread misinformation campaign, Mr. Jalosjos does he not possess all the qualifications, he also has one of the disqualifications prescribed by law having been sentenced for two counts of Statutory Rape and six counts of Acts of Lasciviousness, sentencing him to Reclusion Perpetua and Reclusion Temporal, respectively for each count and suffers from the accessory penalty of perpetual absolute disqualification. He is not qualified to register as a voter and to vote; he is disqualified to register and to vote in any elections,” Salazar said.
“Mr. Jalosjos cannot circumvent our laws by mere subterfuge. He needs to own up to his past actions and suffer the consequences of his crimes. I will not stand idly by while certain personalities make a mockery of our laws,” she added.
Jalosjos, whose sentence was commuted by President Gloria Arroyo, insisted that he is qualified to vote and run in the elections because he had served his jail term.
But Salazar said: “Even if Mr. Jalosjos was granted a commutation of sentence by then President Gloria Arroyo, the commutation merely reduced his original sentence from an imprisonment of forty years to sixteen years; three months and three days and has not reinstate his privilege to register as voter, to vote, and be voted unless these are expressly remitted and restored by pardon.”
“Since Mr. Jalosjos was not granted an absolute pardon, but a mere commutation of sentence, his perpetual absolute disqualification remains. The Commutation of sentence is not the same nor equal to a summary pardon,” she said.
Salazar also cited Section 11 of the Voter’s Registration Act of 1996 and Section 6 of COMELEC Resolution No. 9149 of 2011 – “that any person who has been sentenced by final judgment to suffer imprisonment of not less than one year shall not reacquire the right to vote until the expiration of five years after service of sentence.”
She said records at the Bureau of Corrections showed that Jalosjos was released from prison on March 18, 2009 after serving his reduced sentence.
“In other words, even assuming for the sake of argument that Mr. Jalosjos may reacquire the right to vote despite his criminal convictions, he will not reacquire such right until March 17, 2014,” Salazar said.
Jomar Lobregat, the younger brother of Zamboanga City Mayor Celso Lobgregat, who is running as congressman in Zamboanga City, also filed a similar disqualification against the wealthy Jalosjos with the local poll body.
Despite his wealth, Jalosjos is not popular among locals and remains unknown to many in Zamboanga City. (With a report from Marvin Segura)
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