The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is poised to take the first crack at issues affecting the right to run in the May 10, 2010 polls of candidates for President, Vice President and Senator who do not possess constitutional and legal qualifications of the office to which they aspire to be elected.

The Comelec, led by Chairman Jose A.R. Melo, approved en banc Resolution No. 8696 giving it the power to refuse motu proprio or even without a verified petition, giving due course to or even cancel the certificates of candidacy of such candidates.

“This means that the Comelec, as an independent constitutional office and supreme guardian of election laws, can rule firsthand, whether President Arroyo, the moment she files her certificate of candidacy, can run for any of the positions at stake in the elections, except for President,” prominent election lawyers said.

The lawyers said the Comelec, by invoking en banc Resolution 8696, can also rule that former President Joseph Estrada can again run for President as contended by him and his lawyers or he is constitutionally barred from doing so as argued by other sectors.

“Comelec will also enrich Philippine jurisprudence if it will rule on whether former Senate President Franklin M. Drilon who served for two consecutive terms in the Senate for a total of 12 years can already run for Senator after an interim of only three years,” lawyers Francisco B. Sibayan and Yasser B. Lumbos said.

They said if Comelec waits for a petition to be filed to question the constitutional qualifications of certain candidadates, the printing of ballots for automated elections will be delayed as it normally takes time to resolve difficult legal issues.

“On the other hand, the Comelec ruling, provided there is no grave abuse of discretion, could be upheld or deemed upheld by the Supreme Court by not issuing a temporary restraining order against such ruling,” Sibayan said.