G.R. No. 175121 - EN BANC ADELINA TAMAYO-REYES, M.D., VS. COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS AND FERNANDO R. CABITAC.

Ruling

Accordingly, the COMELEC did not commit grave abuse of discretion. Also noteworthy is that relative to the five other irregularities raised in her petition before the COMELEC which were deemed improper for correction of manifest errors, petitioner claimed that the election returns and the statements of votes had been tampered with and falsified. This claim would be appropriate in a pre-proclamation contest proper, not in a petition for mere correction of manifest errors. And as previously mentioned, petitioner failed to record her objection to these alleged irregularities in the minutes of the MBOC. Section 2, Rule 27 of the 1993 COMELEC Rules of Procedure provides that matters raised under Sections 233 (when the election returns are delayed, lost, or destroyed), 234 (when there are omissions on the election returns), 235 (when the election returns appear to be tampered with or falsified), and 236 (when there are discrepancies in the election returns) of the Omnibus Election Code shall be brought in the first instance before the Board of Canvassers only. This provision is mandatory. Thus, petitioner's failure to raise these matters before the MBOC of Taytay, Rizal barred her from questioning the same before the COMELEC. While this Court does not contest the rulings cited by petitioner in Tatlonghari v. COMELEC, [25] Bince, Jr. v. COMELEC, [26] and Ramirez v. COMELEC [27] that a petition for correction of manifest errors may be filed even beyond the reglementary period of five (5) days following the date of proclamation pursuant to Section 5(b), Rule 27 of the 1993 COMELEC Rules of Procedure, and that the COMELEC has the power to annul the proclamation made on the basis of an erroneous tabulation of votes in the election returns or in the statement of votes, we agree with the COMELEC First Division and En Banc that the case of petitioner does not fall within the scope of the above-mentioned rulings. Indeed, even if the truly manifest errors were corrected using the data presented by petitioner herself, the proclamation of private respondent as the winning Vice-Mayoral candidate of Taytay, Rizal will still stand. WHEREFORE, the instant petition for certiorari and prohibition is DISMISSED for lack of merit, and the Resolutions dated June 30, 2006 and October 16, 2006 of the COMELEC First Division and En Banc, respectively, are AFFIRMED. Costs against petitioner. SO ORDERED.