(Eagle News) — Commission on Elections Chair Andres Bautista will resign from his post by the end of this year.
In a statement on Wednesday, Bautista said he believed “this was the right time to step down given the postponement of the barangay and SK elections.”
In a press conference, he said he submitted a letter to President Rodrigo Duterte this morning to inform him of his decision.
“This was not an easy decision. But my family, especially my children, need me now more than ever,” Bautista, whose sour relations with his estranged wife Patricia came into fore when she accused him publicly of not declaring his wealth truthfully in his Statement of Assets, Liabilities and Net Worth, said.
Patricia’s accusations became the bases for an impeachment complaint filed against the Comelec chair, who was also taken to task for the leak of voters’ information in 2016, among others.
The House justice committee, however, junked the impeachment complaint against him with a vote of 26-2, citing insufficiency in form.
“Thankful”
In his statement, Bautista said he believes he has “served the Commission well and the Filipino people to the best of (his) ability, but only with (the) faithful help and support” of the rest in Comelec.
He said the May 2016 national and local elections, for instance, are a “testament to (their) collective sacrifices and teamwork,” noting that the polls were hailed by independent local and foreign observers as the “best managed and most credible in (the country’s) electoral history.”
He thanked his “Comelec family,” who he said “never left (his) side” amid the “hurtful, baseless, and malicious accusations hurled against (him).”
“I am thankful for the love, prayers and support you have shown me most especially during my most challenging times..From the bottom of my heart, thank you, my Comelec family. It has been a joy and privilege to work for, and serve with you,” he said.
“From my visits to Tuguegarao, to Tawi Tawi, Manila to Mindanao, I will cherish all of our shared memories. I trust that you will continue to perform the mandate entrusted to the Commission, protect the integrity of our elections, and faithfully serve the interests of the Filipino people,” he added.
Palace reaction
In a statement, Communications Secretary Martin Andanar said the Palace “respect(s)” Bautista’s decision, and wished him well.
Presidential Legal Counsel Salvador Panelo, for his part, noted that Bautista’s planned resignation was “an honorable exit” that was “motivated by his desire to protect his children from the debilitating consequences arising from his family being in the vortex of an injurious public controversy.”
“That it came after the impeachment complaint has been dismissed by the House of Representatives stripped the (planned) resignation as an escape valve vis a vis the complaint filed against him,” Panelo said.