BASISTA — Finally, Jocelyn Perez will be proclaimed the new mayor of this town with barely five months left in the 2013 term occupied by then Mayor Manolito de Leon.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) issued a writ of execution for the Supreme Court’s decision affirming the annulment of the 2013 proclamation of De Leon.

“This is it,” an elated Perez told The PUNCH on January 31 after she received the notice that she finally got what she fought long and hard for – that De Leon who beat her by 67 votes was not qualified to run for mayor in 2013 because of his dual citizenship.

Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista signed a writ of execution dated Jan. 27, 2016 in favor of Jocelyn Perez and directed the Special Municipal Board of Canvassers of Basista town to proclaim her as duly-elected mayor on February 12 at the Palacio del Gobernador at the Comelec central office in Intramuros, Manila.

A Comelec en banc decision was issued on Oct. 9, 2015 annulling the proclamation of De Leon and the Supreme Court affirmed the poll body’s decision on November 10, 2015.

Perez said a Thanksgiving Mass will be held at the town auditorium on February 14 at 8:00 a.m. to signal the start of her assumption of office.

She said it is the best gift of love she received in the month of February. “I cried when I received the news about the writ of execution. Finally it’s here. God is really good,” she said.

A Comelec resolution established that de Leon is a natural born Filipino citizen who lost his citizenship when he was naturalized as an American citizen. However, on Dec. 3, 2008, he availed of the repatriation process under R.A. No. 9225 and took his Oath of Allegiance. On Oct. 17, 2009, he executed the Oath of Renunciation of his foreign citizenship.

“At this point in time, he is qualified to run and seek local elective position. However, his acts of using his American passport on Sept. 10, 2010 and June 26, 2011 or before the 2013 elections effectively barred him from running and holding public office. He reverted to his earlier status of being a dual citizen,” the resolution read.

In the 2010 elections, De Leon defeated Perez in the mayoralty race with 301 margin of votes. In the 2013 polls, De Leon and Perez fought again and he won with only 67 margin of votes.

But the long-running political rivalry between the Perez and De Leon is far from over since the two will again seek another mandate in the May 9, 2016 elections. De Leon is the Liberal Party’s bet while Perez is a member of the Nationalist People’s Coalition-Biskeg na Pangasinan party. (Tita Roces)

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