Two days after a grumbling Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Sixto Brillantes threatened to resign, President Benigno Aquino has appointed two commissioners for the poll body.
With less than a month before the May 13 elections, Aquino signed the appointment of Luie Guia and Al Parreno to fill the posts vacated by Armando Velasco and Rene Sarmiento, who ended their terms in February.“The President is confident that in assuming their new positions as commissioners, they will demonstrate integrity, probity and independence in the conduct of their duties and further strengthen Comelec in fulfilling its constitutional mandate to ensure free, orderly, honest, peaceful and credible elections,” Palace spokesman Edwin Lacierda said.
The new appointees are expected to report to the Comelec on Monday. “They will assume their post after they take their oaths of office,” he added
Guia was the acting director of the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (Lente).
“He has also been an international election consultant to countries such as Papua New Guinea and Kenya,” Lacierda said.
A political science and law graduate of the University of the Philippines (UP), Guia began his career at the Comelec.
He served as executive assistant under former Comelec chairman Christian Monsod from 1992 to 1995 and also became a consultant to former Commissioner Regalado Maambong from 1996 to 1998.
Parreno, on the other hand, is presently serving as a board member of the Land Transportation and Franchise Board.
He finished business administration and management and earned his bachelor of law degree from UP. He graduated ninth in his class and received the dean’s medal for academic excellence.
He was a co-founder of the law firm Diaz, Parreno and Caringal and served in different companies in the country and abroad.
Lacierda said Transportation Secretary Joseph Emilio Abaya is finalising his nominees to the president for the post vacated by Parreno. Former Lanao del Norte representative Macabangkit Lanto and election lawyer Bernadette Sardillo were earlier appointed Comelec commissioners but they declined the positions.
Brillantes welcomed the appointment of Guia and Parreno, saying they would greatly help in resolving pending cases in the commission.
“We welcome it specially since they are both lawyers and can help in our quasi-judicial function,” the poll chief said.
Brillantes was particularly pleased with Guia’s appointment, saying he was “practically an insider” since he has been with Lente and was a member of the Comelec Advisory Council (CAC).
“Elections is really his line. Luie is practically an insider since he has been with us for a long time. He really knows the elections,” the Comelec head said. Brillantes is set to meet with the president to discuss his plan to quit his Comelec post. The poll chief said he will take the weekend off to consult with his children and relatives about his resignation.
“I’ll contact my relatives and children then I’ll make the decision on Monday,” Brillantes said. He revealed that one of his children had asked him to resign.
The poll chief said he will discuss his plan with Aquino next week.