Lawyer Virgilio Garcia filed a petition on Monday to disqualify senatorial aspirants ACT-CIS Rep. Erwin Tulfo and Ben Tulfo; ACT-CIS Rep. Jocelyn Tulfo, Quezon City Rep. Ralph Tulfo, and Turismo party-list nominee Wande Tulfo-Teo which are trying to get seats in the lower chamber.
The lawyer cites that the said candidates are part of a political dynasty, which is prohibited in the constitution and are not natural-born Filipinos.
According to Article II Section 26 of the 1987 Constitution, the State shall guarantee equal access to opportunities for public service, and prohibit political dynasties as may be defined by law.
The Omnibus Election Code also requires natural-born Filipinos to be qualified as candidates for national-level positions such as the President, Vice President, and members of Congress.
The issue of not being a natural-born Filipino stems from Rep. Erwin Tulfo’s statement in his radio program ‘Punto Asintado’ on Jan. 6 that he admitted to becoming an undocumented worker in the United States (US).
“That’s the only mistake that I did. Nag-TNT (tago nang tago) po ako,” Erwin said during the radio program.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Garcia told reporters that they could release a decision 15 to 20 days after the respondents submit an answer and the Comelec division releases one.
‘No law against it’
Erwin said in a press conference of the Alyansa para sa Bagong Pilipinas in Pasay City on Monday that there is no enabling law against political dynasties that can act as a basis for their disqualification.
“Narinig ko lamang ito sa aking barbero, nakabasa sa social media. Na may nag-file daw,” he told reporters.
The lawmaker added that a law against political dynasties must be created in order for the disqualification case to succeed.
“Hangga’t wala pong batas, ay magkakaroon po pa rin ng ganito [political dynasties],” Erwin explained.
He also stated that he supports the removal of political dynasties and he will let their lawyer, Atty. Karen Jimeno to take care of the pending case.
Ben Tulfo said in a press release that he trusts the decision of the Comelec upon the matter.
“For now, I trust the wisdom of the Commission on Elections,” Tulfo said in a video posted on his Facebook page.
Ben also sides with his brother for advocating against political dynasties.
“Pero ako, pabor ako sa anti-political dynasty,” the BITAG host added in the video.
Incumbent Sen. Raffy Tulfo also refutes the claim of being a political dynasty in an interview on Tuesday.
“I don’t think so, I leave it up to the people. Kasi kung gusto ka ng tao, iboboto ka nila. Kung ayaw niyo mga kapatid ko, please don’t vote for them. Pero kung sa tingin niyo makakapagsilbi sila nang maayos, then go ahead. Kayo na mag-decide,” the Senator said in the interview.
The Tulfo brothers have been the frontrunners of the midterm poll surveys, with Erwin ranking first and Ben second in the recently released OCTA research for the 1st quarter of 2025.
