Defensor-Santiago v.

Ramos

Facts: 

After Fidel Ramos was declared President, defeated candidate Miriam Defensor-

Santiago filed an election protest with the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET).
Subsequently, while the case is pending, she ran for the office of Senator and,
having been declared elected, assumed office as Senator.

Issue:

Was Santiago's election protest deemed abandoned with her election and
assumption of office as Senator?

Held:

Yes. In assuming the office of Senator then, the Protestant has effectively
abandoned or withdrawn this protest, or at the very least, abandoned
her determination to protect and pursue the public interest involved in the matter of
who is the real choice of the electorate. Such abandonment or withdrawal operates
to render moot the instant protest. Moreover, the dismissal of this protest would
serve public interest as it would dissipate the aura of uncertainty as to the results of
the 1992 presidential election, thereby enhancing the all-to crucial political
stability of the nation during this period of national recovery. It must also be
stressed that under the Rules of the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, an election
protest may be summarily dismissed, regardless of the public policy and public
interest implications thereof, on the following grounds: (1) The petition
is insufficient in form and substance; (2) The petition is filed beyond the periods
provided in Rules 14 and 15 hereof; (3) The filing fee is not paid within the periods
provided for in these Rules; (4) The cash deposit, or the first P 100,000.00 thereof,
is not paid within 10 days after the filing of the protest; and (5) The petition or
copies thereof and the annexes thereto filed with the Tribunal are not clearly
legible. Other grounds for a motion to dismiss, e.g., those provided in the Rules of
Court which apply in a suppletory character, may likewise be pleaded as
affirmative defenses in the answer. After which, the Tribunal may, in its discretion,
hold a preliminary hearing on such grounds. In sum, if an election be dismissed on
technical grounds, then it must be, for a decidedly stronger reason, if it has become
moot due to its abandonment by the Protestant. (Defensor-Santiago vs. Ramos,
P.E.T. Case No. 001. February 13, 1996)