The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) has suspended Atty. Harold Respicio’s proclamation as vice mayor of Reina Mercedes, Isabela, due to an ongoing disqualification case.
Respicio emerged as the frontrunner in the vice mayoral race with 6,042 votes, outpacing his rivals Anthony “Bong” Respicio, who received 5,456 votes, and Boy Baua, who got 2,006 votes.
The disqualification case, initiated by COMELEC on February 28, stems from a video allegedly circulated by Atty. Respicio, in which he claimed he could hack the Automated Counting Machines (ACMs) using a backroom program.
Adding to the controversy, on May 10, Respicio raised concerns in a Facebook post about discrepancies in the ACM software version. According to him, the version installed during final testing and sealing was 3.5.0, differing from version 3.4.0 cited in the source code review report published by COMELEC.
In light of these statements, COMELEC issued a show-cause order against Respicio for a possible violation of Section 261(z)(11) of the Omnibus Election Code, which prohibits the dissemination of false or alarming election-related information.
Despite the legal challenge, Atty. Respicio remains firm in his stance, defending his statements as an exercise of his right to free speech. The standoff between him and the electoral body continues, with both sides showing no signs of backing down.