MANILA, Philippines — Pasig City Mayor Vico Sotto on Thursday filed election offense and perjury complaints against Sarah Discaya over alleged violations of campaign finance and citizenship disclosure rules following the May 2025 polls.
Sotto submitted a complaint before the Commission on Elections’ Political Finance and Affairs Department in Intramuros, Manila, and separately filed a perjury complaint before the Pasig City Prosecutor’s Office earlier in the day.
In his complaint-affidavit, Sotto alleged that Discaya violated Section 100 of the Omnibus Election Code by exceeding the allowable campaign spending and by being untruthful in her Statement of Contributions and Expenses for the May 2025 elections, noting that with 463,885 registered voters in Pasig, a party-backed candidate was allowed to spend up to P1,391,655 based on the P3-per-voter cap during the March 28 to May 10, 2025 campaign period.
Sotto said Discaya declared P895,000 in expenses for printed campaign materials but did not report amounts for digital advertisements, billboards, rallies, caucuses or related travel, and attached screenshots of online advertisements that were either labeled as donated or paid for by Discaya yet were not reflected in her SOCE.
“I think this is the right timing. Before elections, I did not want to file any disqualification case because I wanted the people to decide, but now the period of politics is over and we are just basing this on what is right and what is written in the law,” Sotto said.
