Golero accuses Escolin of usurping President Roxas post

By Felipe V. Celino

ROXAS CITY, Capiz — Alfonso Golero, a former vice mayor of President Roxas, accused Mayor Receliste “Tanoy” Escolin of unlawfully occupying the town’s mayoral post despite rulings questioning his eligibility.

Golero issued the statement after Escolin delivered his 10th State of the Municipality Address on Monday, July 6, 2026.

Golero, a resident of President Roxas, filed a complaint against Escolin for alleged usurpation of official functions under Article 177 of the Revised Penal Code before the Office of the Provincial Prosecutor in Roxas City.

Article 177 covers the performance of official acts under the pretense of holding a government position without being lawfully entitled to do so.

The Comelec First Division canceled Escolin’s certificate of candidacy in a July 11, 2025, resolution, citing material misrepresentation related to the constitutional three-term limit for local elective officials.

Escolin filed a motion for reconsideration, but the Comelec en banc denied it in a resolution dated Jan. 20, 2026, that was furnished to the parties Jan. 21.

In a separate quo warranto case, the Regional Trial Court ordered Escolin in November 2025 to vacate the mayoral post.

In a 20-page decision dated Nov. 10, 2025, Judge Joanne Marie Betita of RTC Branch 15 declared Escolin ineligible to seek reelection after serving three consecutive terms.

“Respondent Receliste ‘Tanoy’ Escolin is hereby found to be ineligible to run for Mayor of the Municipality of President Roxas, is hereby disqualified from holding said position,” the court stated.

The court ordered Escolin to stop performing the functions of mayor.

The court also declared the mayoral post vacant and directed that it be filled under Section 44(a) of the Local Government Code, which governs permanent vacancies in elective local offices.

Former Sangguniang Bayan member Bart Locsin, one of Escolin’s three opponents in the May 2025 mayoral election, filed the quo warranto petition.

A quo warranto case is a special civil action that challenges a person’s legal authority to hold public office.

Escolin maintained that the RTC had no authority to remove him because its decision was not yet final and executory.

Escolin won the May 2025 election with 9,893 votes, defeating Locsin with 7,787, former Vice Mayor Botoy Asis with 317, and Von Geise with nine.

Shortly after the election, the Comelec provincial office said Escolin would remain mayor while the petition to cancel his certificate of candidacy was pending before the commission’s central office.

“In as far as the Provincial Office ng COMELEC is concerned, hindi kasi ito dumaan sa amin kundi diretso nag-file sa Manila. Pero kung i-base natin ang fact na naano siya, na-proclaim being the winning candidate sa pagka-mayor sa President Roxas, meaning nito, walang order of suspension of proclamation. It is safe to say na pending pa ang case niya,” then-Capiz election supervisor Atty. Salud Milagros Villanueva said.

During his recent address at the President Roxas public plaza, Escolin expressed gratitude for the continued support he had received during his decade in public service.

Escolin described his 10th State of the Municipality Address as a historic milestone.

He claimed to be the only municipal mayor in Capiz to have delivered 10 such addresses.

Golero said almost six months had passed since the Comelec en banc issued its resolution and that the Supreme Court had not issued a temporary restraining order as of July 10, 2026.

Golero argued that Escolin began usurping the mayoral post after he allegedly failed to secure a temporary restraining order by Jan. 26, 2026.

The Daily Guardian sought Escolin’s comment, but he was unavailable as of press time.