Rivera v.

Comelec
Topic: Disqualification after term end, effect of

FACTS:

A petition to cancel a candidate’s Certificate of Candidacy was filed on the ground that he was
elected and had served three previous consecutive terms as mayor violating Sec.8, Art X of the
Constitution and Sec. 43(b) of RA 7160. The candidate however argued that he served his second
term (1998-2001) only as a caretaker of the office or a de facto officer. He alleged that he was
not validly elected during his second term since his proclamation as mayor was declared void by
the RTC in 2001. Moreover, he was also preventively suspended by the Ombudsman in an anti-
graft case from Jan.16, 1999 – July 15, 1999.

ISSUE:

Whether or not candidate’s second term be counted as part of the three-term limit even though it
was subsequently declared void.

RULING:

Yes.

This Court reiterates that the framers of the Constitution specifically included an exception to the
people's freedom to choose those who will govern them in order to avoid the evil of a single person
accumulating excessive power over a particular territorial jurisdiction as a result of a prolonged
stay in the same office.

Sec. 8, Article X of the Constitution is violated and its purpose defeated when an official serves
in the same position for three consecutive terms. Whether as "caretaker" or "de facto" officer, he
exercises the powers and enjoys the prerequisites of the office which enables him "to stay on
indefinitely". a

The candidate in this case was the mayor for the entire period notwithstanding the decision of the
RTC in the electoral protest case ousting him as mayor. Such circumstance does not constitute
an interruption in serving the full term.