BOGUS NP-NPC COALITION A ‘COALITION IN AFTERTHOUGHT’ – LP

The bogus alliance between the Nacionalista Party and the Nationalist People’s Coalition was a ‘coalition in afterthought,’ belatedly formed to prop NP’s bid to steal from the Liberal Party its right of being accredited as the dominant minority party in the May 10 national elections, the LP said today.  

The LP, in a petition filed with the Commission on Elections, said that in trying to win the dominant minority status, “petitioner NP-NPC Coalition clearly, is attempting not only to pull the rug from under LP’s feet but to circumvent the law and make a mockery of our democracy.”  

“The out-of-order petition filed by this imaginary coalition scorns both the political party system and the electoral exercise, and sidelines the Filipino people’s rights,” it stressed as it sought to dismiss the lumped petition for registration of the NP-NPC Coalition and its accreditation as the dominant minority party.  

The LP pointed out that the alleged NP-NPC Coalition was formed only on January 28, 2010 – a good six months after the Comelec-imposed deadline for registration of political parties. Comelec Resolution No. 8646 specified the deadline to be on August 17, 2009.  

“It is beyond doubt that the supposed NP-NPC Coalition is not a registered political party. It is therefore not qualified to file a petition for the accreditation for the dominant minority party status,” it stressed.  

LP added that even if the Comelec approves the registration of the NP-NPC Coalition, this would “not cure the defect” since “any subsequent registration of the supposed NP-NPC Coalition will never change the fact that at the time of its filing, the NP-NPC Coalition is not a registered political party.”  

Also, the LP claimed the bogus Coalition was formed only to meet the Comelec’s requirement that the dominant minority party should field the most number of candidates in the national and local level in the elections.  

It pointed out that the NP and the NPC, as separate political parties, failed to beat the LP into fielding the most number of candidates for the May polls. The LP fielded a 7,945-strong army of candidates in the national and local elections while the NP fielded only 7,393 candidates and the NPC had 3,435 candidates.  

LP said while the combined number of candidates fielded by the NP and the NPC were more than that of the LP’s, the fake NP-NPC Coalition would still not be able to comply with the other Comelec requirements.  

The LP said the bogus alliance does not have its own track record, its own history, its own set of municipal and city chapters, its own set of incumbent elected officials who were elected under the supposed NP-NPC Coalition, its own set of national and local candidates who actually submitted a certificate of nomination and acceptance under the alleged NP-NPC Coalition and has been evaluated classified and certified by the Comelec Law department to be an NP-NPC Coalition candidate.  

It noted the NP-NPC Coalition could not have any incumbent officials since it did not participate in the last 2007 elections. Also, “as far as the certifications of nominations and acceptance are concerned, there are no NP-NPC Coalition Certificate of Nomination and Appointments that were submitted and as far as the Certified List of Candidates of the Comelec Law department is concerned, there is no one candidate under the banner of an NP-NPC Coalition.”  

According to the LP, it is clear: “the NP-NPC Coalition is evidently tainted with bad faith, which constitutes a deliberate attempt to make a mockery of the electoral process.”  

“Allowing such mockery will effectively diffuse the strength of other genuine opposition political parties, and in turn undeniably emasculate their chances of obtaining the Commission’s nod as the dominant minority party,” it added.  

The Comelec, it stressed, “must not tolerate such patent mockery. The Comelec has the power and the duty to enforce the law, not only to protect the political parties but, more importantly, the electorate, in line with the Commission’s broad constitutional mandate to ensure orderly elections.”

The Liberal Party has filed a petition with the Comelec seeking its accreditation as the dominant minority party this year. The LP was named the dominant minority party during the 2007 senatorial elections.  

The dominant minority party status is given to the political party that has the most number of incumbent elective officials and the most number of candidates for national and local positions. It is likewise given to the party with the longest public service record and which has the sufficient organizational strength to launch a nationwide campaign.  

The dominant minority party will get a copy of the electronic returns, formerly called elections returns, once the automated canvassing of votes begin at the close of the May 10 elections.

02-25-2010