MANILA, 24 October — The House committee on justice has the dismissed the impeachment complaint against Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Luzviminda Tancangco.
A gloating Tancangco immediately twitted her accusers, particularly the National Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), saying that the pursuit "of clean and honest elections is not a monopoly of one individual or group."
"As major stakeholders in elections, our lawmakers (were) in the best position to pass judgment on the . . . substance of the impeachment complaint," she said in a statement.
But the Namfrel, which spearheaded the oust-Tancangco campaign, said it was hopeful that the plenary would be more "enlightened."
The justice committee is expected to report the referendum result to the plenary next month, after Congress returns from a two-week break. The House will then vote as a body, whether to affirm or overturn the committee's decision.
"There's been a cover-up," said Namfrel executive director Telibert Laoc in a phone interview. "We want an investigation."
The complaint against Tancangco stemmed from several "violations," foremost of which was her alleged railroading of the six-billion-peso Voters Registration and Identification System project, which was recently nullified by the Supreme Court.
Last Oct. 9, the justice committee members decided on a referendum to decide the merit of the complaint after failing to muster a quorum. The vote was held last week, but the result was announced only Wednesday: 36 members and ex-oficio members voted against the complaint for lack of substance, and 16 voted in favor. Four abstained.
Bacolod City Rep. Monico Puentevella assailed the committee for allowing the voting to actually take two weeks when, he said, the original period agreed upon was only one week. "You know (that) one week (makes a lot of) difference in Congress," he said.
Tancangco, also in a phone interview, said she trusted the committee could justify its decision. She said the "personal attacks and black propaganda" against her should now stop. "It's time to buckle down to work."
