Information rights advocates and media groups led by the Right 2 Know Right Now (R2KRN) Coalition urged the Supreme Court (SC) to compel the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) and Miru Joint Venture (Miru JV) to release salient documents on their P18 billion contract for the 2025 Automated Election System (AES).
The independent coalition, composed of various civil society organizations (CSO), media groups, and freedom of information (FOI) advocates, filed its petition before the SC on Thursday, February 13.
“For the first time, we are impelling a private party, the Miru JV, to directly be responsible for providing information to the public,” R2KRN lead counsel and co-convener Atty. Nepomuceno Malaluan said.
Public concern
The coalition highlights the lack of procedural standards for FOI enforcement when government agencies, such as COMELEC, engage with private entities like the South Korean firm Miru Systems Co.
Notably, in March 2024, COMELEC entered a joint venture with South Korean firm Miru Systems Co. alongside St. Timothy Construction Corporation (STCC), Integrated Computer Systems, and Centerpoint Solutions Technologies Inc. for the 2025 AES. However, eight months later, in October, STCC withdrew from the Miru JV.
The withdrawal of STCC from the Miru JV stemmed from an ultimatum from COMELEC Chairman George Erwin Garcia after discovering that Sarah Discaya, the incorporator of STCC, was planning to run for mayor of Pasig City in the 2025 elections.
In the same month before STCC’s withdrawal, reelectionist Pasig Mayor Vico Sotto filed a disqualification case against Discaya over a “conflict of interest” following her links as the owner and chief financial officer of St. Gerrard Construction General Contractor and Development Corporation, which, he said, is an “alter-ego” of STCC.
Garcia then warned STCC that Discaya’s candidacy could lead to a disqualification case. Given the choice between staying in the joint venture and risking legal repercussions or withdrawing from the deal, STCC opted for the latter.
R2KRN confirmed that Discaya and her husband, Pacifico, were incorporators of STCC. Additionally, Discaya is listed as the authorized representative of Alpha & Omega Contractor and Development Corporation, a firm linked to STCC, as per certifications from the Department of Public Works and Highways and the Philippine Contractors Accreditation Board.
This issue sparked a serious concern for the coalition and election transparency watchdogs. R2KRN publicly raised legal, contractual, and ethical questions specifically about the legality of the JV partner’s withdrawal, its impact on the 60% Filipino ownership requirement, the capacity of remaining partners to fulfill its contractual obligations, and the continuing liability of STCC under the JV.
As stipulated in the 1987 Constitution, foreign ownership of land and businesses is limited only to 40%, with the remaining 60% reserved exclusively under Filipino control
Atty. Malaluan emphasized the unique case of Miru JV, which acts under “the color of a state-related function” by providing substantive services to COMELEC, especially in facilitating the upcoming midterm elections. He stressed that this warrants concern and underscores the constitutional right that must be applied for transparency and accountability.
R2KRN disclosed that the petition was created following their several attempts to submit FOI requests to COMELEC, to which the commission only provided partial information. Miru JV, on the other hand, did not give the requested records or documents and only gave evasive responses.
“By refusing or failing to provide the requested information, being of public concern and not covered by any exception, imposes upon COMELEC a corresponding constitutional duty to provide access to such information,” R2KRN stated, emphasizing the negligence of COMELEC for its public function which resulted in grave diligence.
Following the filing, Miru released a statement on Friday, February 14, clarifying that it had addressed R2KRN’s information request with the utmost transparency. It added that COMELEC has also provided avenues for information to be accessed, including updates on websites and social media channels and live-streamed events.
“COMELEC remains the primary administrator of this initiative, and we follow every directive to comply fully with legal and regulatory standards,” said Miru.
Meanwhile, the National Union of Journalists of the Philippines (NUJP) stressed the importance of access to information especially concerning matters of public interest such as elections.
“As journalists, information is our business. Transparency in elections is our business, and so is accountability. We were only able to receive partial information and evasive responses from R2KRN’s FOI requests. We take value from those kinds of responses, especially since we’re talking about elections. Government offices should have nothing to hide, but why do they seem apprehensive about releasing the information?” said Paul Soriano of NUJP Metro Manila. NUJP also co-signed the petition as part of the R2KRN.
Soriano added that these developments should be enough to compel them to exercise their legal rights in demanding access to information.
“The right to information is an inherent right of the people. The media is therefore responsible for delivering these to the public. And if there are instances that information remains to be undisclosed, then the public ought to have reasons to raise their vigilance, especially in the upcoming 2025 elections,” he noted.
