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Lawyers question Comelec extension for Marcos camp to answer petition vs candidacy

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<div class="embed-wrap"><figure data-feedback="fb:likes,fb:comments"><img alt="Members of Akbayan Partylist hold a protest outside the Commission on Election headquarters on Nov. 4, 2021, calling for the disqualification of presidential candidate Ferdinand " bongbong="" src="http://sa.kapamilya.com/absnews/abscbnnews/media/2021/tvpatrol/11/13/20211104-marcos-disqualification-protest-jc-015824390.jpg"/><figcaption>Members of Akbayan Partylist hold a protest outside the Commission on Election headquarters on Nov. 4, 2021, calling for the disqualification of presidential candidate Ferdinand &quot;Bongbong&quot; Marcos Jr. in the 2022 presidential election.</figcaption></figure></div>MANILA— Lawyers on Friday questioned the poll body&#x27;s decision to grant the request of presidential aspirant Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to extend the deadline to answer the petition to cancel his candidacy, saying it is &quot;unprecedented&quot; and &quot;unheard of.&quot;Lawyer Ted Te, counsel for the petitioner, said the Commission on Elections should stand by its rules after the Marcos camp failed to respond to the complaint on time.&quot;We would presume that the Comelec meant what it said and because it is consistent with its own rules, we would again presume, taking it at face value, everything being official, that you know it is a non-extendible period,&quot; he told ANC&#x27;s &quot;Headstart&quot; Friday.On Nov. 16, Marcos&#x27; camp filed a motion for extension after the Comelec issued summons on Nov. 12, giving them a non-extendible deadline of 5 days to respond to the petition that would ultimately prevent the late dictator&#x27;s son from joining the presidential race in 2022.<ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/12/21/comelec-summons-marcos-over-cancel-petition">Comelec issues summons to Bongbong Marcos over cancel petition</a></li></ul>It was also &quot;suspicious&quot; that Marcos&#x27; spokesperson, lawyer Vic Rodriguez announced that their camp was granted the motion for extension before it was formally handed down, Te said.&quot;A statement like that made ahead of an official issuance of an order, which later validates or affirms the order, is well at the very least suspicious,&quot; he added.Te urged the Comelec to investigate it as such announcement may prove detrimental to its mandate.&quot;Was it a lucky guess? Or was it again, as [Comelec spokesperson] director [James] Jimenez points out, maybe confidence-building measures? I don&#x27;t know but I think the Comelec must find out,&quot; he said.He stressed that Comelec&#x27;s Nov. 18 order did not extend anything since the period for the Marcos camp to answer the petition lapsed on Nov. 16.<figure class="op-interactive"><iframe allow="autoplay; fullscreen" frameBorder="0" height="100%" id="ivsplayer01" scrolling="no" src="https://player.ivideosmart.com/ivsplayer/v4/dist/html/iframe-src.html?iframeid=ivsplayer01&amp;key=e8c22c015ca9eafa76f1e3edfa03c603&amp;spid=3001339&amp;vid=1835139" width="100%"></iframe></figure><div class="iwantbar">Watch more in <a href="//www.iwantv.com.ph/">iWantv</a> or <a href="//tfc.tv/">TFC.tv</a></div><ul class="op-related-articles">	<li><a href="https://news.abs-cbn.com/news/11/18/21/comelec-grants-marcos-extension-to-answer-case">Comelec grants Marcos unprecedented extension to answer case</a></li></ul>For election lawyer Emil Marañon, the extension granted Marcos was &quot;unprecedented&quot; and &quot;unheard of.&quot;He said the filing of a motion for extension before Comelec was considered &quot;taboo&quot; because the nature of the petition was a summary proceeding.&quot;It seems that the Comelec changed its mind... Looking at the history sa Comelec so far sa (in my) 10-year practice ko, I haven&#x27;t heard of a case being extended &#x27;yung period to file answer,&quot; he added.Marañon clarified that under the rules of Comelec, the division has the discretion to extend the period of time for appeals.However, it was mentioned in the summons to Marcos camp that the period is non-extendible.There are 5 pending petitions before the Comelec seeking to block Marcos&#x27; attempt for the country&#x27;s top post: 3 petitions for the cancellation of COC, 1 petition for declaration as nuisance candidate and a petition for disqualification. Human rights advocates and survivors of the martial rule are among petitioners against Marcos, namesake son of the late dictator.

Comelec's decision to grant the motion for extension of the Marcos camp was questioned by some lawyers, saying it is 'unprecedented' and 'unheard of'.