Murang Kuryente party list Arthur Yap – Photo from Art Yap/Facebook
A petition for quo warranto has been filed before the House of Representatives Electoral Tribunal (HRET) seeking to remove former Bohol Governor Arthur Yap from his seat as the first nominee of the Murang Kuryente party list.
The case, HRET Case No. 25-017, challenges Yap’s legal authority to hold public office, citing an alleged perpetual disqualification stemming from an Ombudsman ruling last February.
Petitioner Edgardo Ingking argued that Yap is perpetually disqualified from government service following the 19 February 2025 decision by the Office of the Ombudsman.
The Ombudsman found Yap and seven other provincial government employees guilty of grave misconduct with serious dishonesty during his tenure as Bohol governor.
The decision ordered Yap’s dismissal from government service, forfeiture of retirement benefits, and perpetual disqualification from holding public office.
The petition stresses that Ombudsman rulings are immediately executory and are not stayed by the filing of an appeal, citing Section 7, Rule III of the Ombudsman’s Rules of Procedure.
Ingking, a registered voter and member of anti-corruption group Lihok Bol-anon Batok Korapsyon, claims Yap has no legal basis to serve as a member of the House of Representatives.
The filing also alleges that Yap committed fraudulent misrepresentation by declaring in his certificate of nomination that he possessed all qualifications for the position.
Yap was proclaimed as Murang Kuryente’s first nominee on 2 October 2025 after the Commission on Elections disqualified the initial winner, the Duterte Youth Partylist.
The petition asks the HRET to remove Yap from office, allowing the partylist’s second nominee to assume the congressional seat.
