Pacquiao legal fight with Chiongbian ends in draw

The legal match between boxing champion Manny Pacquiao and businessman Roy Chiongbian ended in a draw after the Commission on Elections (Comelec) junked the disqualification cases they filed against each other. The Comelec, in an en banc resolution, has junked with finality Pacquiao’s petition to disqualify Chiongbian in the 2010 congressional race. The Comelec’s second division, meanwhile, also junked Chiongbian’s petition to disqualify Pacquiao. Pacquiao and Chiongbian, the brother of outgoing three-term Rep. Erwin Chiongbian, will square off for the lone congressional district of Sarangani province in the May 10 elections. It is not yet known whether Pacquiao would bring the case to the Supreme Court, while Chiongbian’s camp is expected to appeal the Comelec’s second division’s ruling. Pacquiao’s People’s Champ Movement (PCM) sought to disqualify Chiongbian at the Comelec first division due to residency issues, claiming the latter resides in Muntinlupa City and not in Sarangani. In an 11-page resolution, the Comelec en banc denied the Filipino boxing icon’s motion for reconsideration, saying that the arguments were a "mere rehash" of the issues already "raised, passed, and considered" by the poll body first division in its February 10, 2010 ruling. Chiongbian claimed that he continues to live in the province, where he is a registered voter and a member of a local political party, even if he goes to Metro Manila to take care of his business interests.

The poll body sided with Pacquiao's political foe, saying that Chiongbian has met the one-year residency requirement needed to run as candidate for Sarangani's congressional representative. "The pieces of evidence lack the degree of persuasiveness required to convince us that an abandonment of origin in favor of a domicile of choice has indeed occurred," the petition said. The Comelec, likewise, added that it was "absurd" to say that Chiongbian was not a resident of the province because his family has a long history and clear line of political pedigree in Sarangani. Aside from Chiongbian's brother Erwin, niece Bridget Chiongbian-Huang and nephew Steve Chiongbian-Solon both served as vice governor, from 2004 to 2007 and 2007 to 2010, respectively. Chiongbian also cited the residency issue in his petition to disqualify Pacquiao, saying that the reigning pound-for-pound king maintains his residency in General Santos City, not in Kiamba town in Sarangani province. Article VI, Section 6 of the Constitution states that members of the House of Representatives should be natural-born Filipino citizens and are at least 25 years old on the day of the election. Candidates for a House seat should also be able to read and write, and except for party-list representatives, should be a registered voter in the district in which they will be elected. Candidates should also be residents of the area they plan to represent, not less than one year immediately preceding the day of the election, the same constitutional provision said. – JVP/JV, GMANews.TV