Pasig City Mayor-elect Vico Sotto is facing a new disqualification petition, just a week after his proclamation, Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Chairman George Erwin Garcia confirmed on Tuesday.
At the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas event in Makati City, Garcia stated that reports had reached him indicating the payment of a filing fee—marking the official filing of a disqualification case.
"Na-report sa akin na parang may nagbabayad ng filing fee sa isang disqualification case na nai-file kanina involving the same personality," said Garcia.
"Hindi ko po alam ang nature but I was informed by the clerk of the commission that it was a petition to disqualify that candidate," he added.
WATCH: Pasig City mayor-elect Vico Sotto pinadidiskwalipika, isang linggo matapos maiproklama
— DZRH NEWS (@dzrhnews) May 20, 2025
‘Na-report sa akin na parang may nagbabayad ng filing fee sa isang disqualification case na nai-file kanina involving the same personality. Hindi ko po alam ang nature but I was… pic.twitter.com/rHeh4Uydq4
Garcia emphasized that, as a general rule, disqualification petitions are filed prior to a candidate’s proclamation.
"After the proclamation, hindi ka na pwedeng mag-file, except election protests or quo warranto o kaya naman gusto mong file-an ng kasong kriminal, election offense pero ang disqualification case merong timeline hanggang period lang before proclamation," Garcia explained.
Sotto was officially proclaimed on May 13 after securing a landslide victory in the midterm elections. He garnered 351,392 votes, far surpassing his opponent Sara Discaya, who received only 29,591.
