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DE CASTRO
PET Case No. 003 Jan. 18, 2008 Quisumbing, J. Bec
petitioners Loren Legarda
responden Noli de Castro
ts
summary Legarda challenges the proclamation of De Castro because of the spurious electoral
returns (ER). As evidence, she asked PET for revision of the votes in two municipalities in
Lanao del Sur. However PET dismissed the protest because she abandoned the same
when she assumed her senatorial seat in the 2007 elections. Furthermore, the ERs as public
documents, have prima facie proof that the facts contained therein are accurate. Legarda
failed to overturn this presumption. Even ruling in favor of the petitioner would not
change the result of the elections.
issue
1. WON Legarda abandoned her protest? YES
2. WON there was electoral fraud? NO.
ratio
On the issue of abandonment of protest
1
The court used the case of Defensor-Santiago v. Ramos wherein the protest filed by the former in the 1992
Presidential elections was deemed abandoned when she assumed her seat in the Senate. This would be in the
interest of the public as it would dissipate the aura of uncertainty as to the results of the 1992 elections. This
case is on all fours with the present controversy, except that Legarda was VP candidate. For being elected
senator in 2007, she is deemed to have abandoned her 2004 VP election protest.
And assuming arguendo that all the votes in the 497 precints included in the pilot areas for the first aspect
(99,400 votes) would be considered in favor of Legarda, The margin of De Castro would still be 881,722 votes!
Those proven (2 municipalities in Lanao del Sur only consists of 9,931 votes.
Legarda: But I did not have enough time to gather more evidence!
SC: PET was liberal already in allowing the first aspect of the case already. It cannot be concluded that a
half million votes were illegally obtained based on the evidence presented by the petitioner. Her evidence is
not sufficient!