Manila, March 26 -- Marikina City Mayor Marcelino Teodoro remains a candidate for the city's first congressional district in the May 12 midterm polls despite his suspension by the Office of the Ombudsman.

"As long as there is no final judgment by the courts in the cases he is facing, he will remain as a candidate regardless of the punishment he received from the Ombudsman," Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said in an interview Wednesday.

"The name of the candidate will remain in the ballots, can be voted upon, and can be proclaimed as long as there is no final judgment."

However, Garcia said the Ombudsman's suspension would affect Teodoro's position as city mayor.

In an order dated March 25, the Ombudsman imposed a six-month pr...