G.R. No. 244027 , April 11, 2023
JOVIT BUELLA Y ABALAIN, PETITIONER, VS. PEOPLE OF THE PHILIPPINES, RESPONDENT.

FACTS

During the 2016 National and Local Elections, Jovit A. Buella (Buella) and four others were charged before the trial court for violation of COMELEC Resolution No. 10015 in relation to Section 261(q) of the Omnibus Election Code. The Information against Buella alleged that on or about May 8, 2016, in Naga City, Camarines Sur, he willfully, unlawfully, and feloniously had in his possession, custody, and control one black folding knife without the written permit from the COMELEC to carry the same outside his residence during the election period. COMELEC Resolution No. 10015, promulgated for the 2016 elections, prohibited the bearing, carrying, or transporting of firearms or other deadly weapons during the election period without COMELEC authorization. Its Rule I, Section 1(f) defined “Deadly Weapon” to include “all types of bladed instruments,” except when necessary for the possessor’s occupation or used as a tool for a legitimate activity.

ISSUE

Whether the inclusion of “all types of bladed instruments” within the definition of “deadly weapon” in COMELEC Resolution No. 10015 is valid.

RULING

No. The concurring opinion agrees with the ponencia that the inclusion of “bladed instruments” under the blanket prohibition on deadly weapons in COMELEC Resolution No. 10015 is ultra vires. The definition of “deadly weapon” in the Resolution is vague and unclear. It lacks comprehensible standards, as it encompasses “all types of bladed instruments” without proper enumeration or definition based on primary purpose or use. This overbroad definition could criminalize the possession of common objects like kitchen knives or shaving blades outside one’s residence, absent a clear standard for what constitutes a “deadly weapon,” what is “necessary” to an occupation, or what is a “legitimate activity.” Such vagueness in a penal provision violates due process, as it fails to give fair notice of prohibited conduct and grants law enforcers unbridled discretion. The COMELEC’s mandate to ensure orderly elections is not achieved by an indiscriminate classification that does not clearly address the root causes of election violence. Accordingly, the concurring vote is to GRANT the appeal and DECLARE “bladed weapons” as excluded from the scope of COMELEC Resolution No. 10015.