Poll exec retires

(UPDATE) FORMER Commission on Elections (Comelec) spokesman Director James Jimenez has tendered his resignation after serving for 16 years as the mouthpiece of the poll body.

Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia on Saturday confirmed Jimenez's resignation, saying that the commission is deeply saddened with the former spokesman's decision to retire early.

Garcia said that “this is personal to him (Jimenez),” and “we respect the personal reason of James Jimenez,” even as he appealed to the public to show the same respect.

“We can only say good luck to Director James Jimenez,” Garcia said, saying that the Information and Education Department (IED) which Jimenez heads is in good hands and the leadership of the Comelec would soon name his replacement.

In a letter dated August 1, Comelec Executive Director Bartolome Sinocruz Jr. informed Jimenez that “your request for retirement from the service is hereby approved/accepted.”

Jimenez's retirement is effective Sept. 16, 2022.

In a text message to The Manila Times, Jimenez said that he served the Comelec for 18 years, adding that his first stint as spokesman was under then Comelec chairman Alfredo Benipayo, an appointee of former president Gloria Macapal Arroyo, who is now the senior deputy speaker of the House of Representatives.

Jimenez formally joined the Comelec in 2004 as a director. He was appointed Comelec spokesman in 2006 till his relief on May 6, 2022 or three days before the May 9 presidential elections.

Former Comelec chairman Saidamen Pangarungan dropped Jimenez as spokesman due to his alleged role in the controversial deal with Halalan 2022 debate organizer Impact Hub Manila. This led to the cancellation of the last leg of the presidential and vice presidential debates.

Jimenez was replaced by lawyer John Rex Laudiangco of the Comelec Legal Department as acting spokesman, but he retained his position as director of the Comelec Information and Education Department.

Jimenez is a law alumnus of the University of Santo Tomas where he received several awards as a member of the debating team. He obtained his law degree in 2000.

Prior to his stint at the Comelec, Jimenez also served as executive assistant to the Supreme Court administrator in 1999 and then at the Office of the Solicitor General for four years.