By Addison Pascua

PHOTO: ABS-CBN News

Following the resignation of the five initial designees of the group, the Komunidad ng Pamilya, Pasyente, at Persons with Disabilities (P3PWD) party-list has tapped former election commissioner Rowena Guanzon as its new first nominee and party-list representative in the incoming 19th Congress.

In a Viber message sent to reporters, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Acting Spokesperson Rex Laudiangco on June 14 made official the notarized certificate of acceptance tendered by Guanzon to the poll body’s Law Department to become the party-list's first nominee.

A day after the nomination was submitted, the Comelec en banc in a majority vote granted the withdrawal of P3PWD party-list's first batch of nominees and gave due course to their substitutes, led by Guanzon as the first nominee.

Laudiangco disclosed that among those submitted to the poll body were the notarized resignation letters tendered by the five original nominees namely Grace Yeneza, Ira Paulo Pozon, Marianne Heidi Cruz Fullon, Peter Jonas David, and Lily Grace Tiangco.

The P3PWD party-list also handed the notarized copy of the nomination, indicating the names of the following new nominees: Ma Rowena Amelia V. Guanzon, Rosalie Garcia, Cherrie Belmonte-Lim, Donnabel Tenorio, and Rodolfo Villar Jr.

The party-list, which aims to represent persons with disabilities was able to clinch a seat in the House of Representatives after placing 24th during the May 9 national elections with a total of 391,174 votes.

Following the en banc decision, Guanzon is set to sit as a congresswoman in the next Congress, amid accusations from National Youth Commission (NYC) Chairperson  Ronald Cardema that the retired commissioner was forcing the party-list nominees to resign in her favor.

To recall, Comelec had initially regulated the deadline for withdrawals and substitutions of party-list nominees last November 15. However, under the Party-list system Act, winning groups are still allowed to change their nominees and submit another set of nominations despite the deadline regulation.


Edited by Danfe Lean Grace R. Elopre