The disqualification case against Reyes arose from the issue of her citizenship alleging that she is an American citizen.
The closest rival of Reyes is former Marinduque Rep. Lord Allan Velasco, son of SC Associate Justice Presbitero Velasco Jr.
Justice Velasco had inhibited himself from the case.
In a statement, Lord Allan Velasco asked ousted Reyes to comply with the SC resolution.
Reyes, meanwhile, has publicly declared she will not obey the decision of the high court. “This open defiance is clearly appalling, especially coming from a lawyer who has sworn, as it were, to ‘obey the laws as well as the legal orders of the duly constituted authorities.’ Reyes commenced G.R. No. 207264, she would now insist that the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal has jurisdiction over her case. However, Reyes did not file any petition with HRET which is contrary to her position, “ Velasco said.
Velasco explained, pursuant to Rule 64 of the Rules of Court, it is the SC, not the HRET, which has jurisdiction to review on certiorari the decisions of the Comelec. As held in Codilla Sr. vs Comelec (G.R. No. 150605, Dec. 10, 2002), the HRET has no appellate jurisdiction over resolutions or decisions of the Comelec.
He emphasized that it was Reyes herself who invoked the jurisdiction of the SC when she filed a petition for certiorari against the Comelec’s May 14, 2013 resolution which cancelled her certificate of candidacy (CoC) on account of her being an American citizen. Thus, she herself admitted that it is the SC, and not the HRET, which has jurisdiction over the issue of the cancellation of her CoC. Unfortunately for her, the court’s June 25 decision and the Oct. 22 resolution ruled that the Comelec did not commit any grave abuse of discretion in cancelling her CoC.
It is, thus, highly unsporting for Reyes, after invoking the jurisdiction of the high court, to decry lack of jurisdiction upon receiving an adverse ruling from the court.
