Palace eyes 12th slot for Zubiri with special elections

Poll chief fraud accomplice — watchdog

06/17/2007

Election watchdog Kontra Daya yesterday accused Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr. of being an alleged accomplice to the massive electoral fraud in Maguindanao, amid an announcement from the Comelec that it will be holding special elections in some parts of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARRM) and the municipality of Taysan, in Batangas.

At the same time, Malacañang expressed optimism over the 12th Senate slot being won by Team Unity (TU) candidate Juan Miguel “Migz” Zubiri, given the recent decisions of the Comelec.

Fr. Joe Dizon, Kontra Daya spokesman, in a press statement issued yesterday, said: “Abalos does not confront head-on the accusations of massive fraud in Maguindanao. Instead, he obscures the situation to provide the leeway for the machinations in favor of administration candidate Miguel Zubiri.”

There are allegations that poll operators are working to get Zubiri to win over opposition senatorial bet Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel lll.

Dizon added that “by refusing to exclude the highly tainted provincial certificates of canvass from the national canvassing and proclaim the Genuine Opposition’s Koko Pimentel III, Abalos is still finding ways to get TU’s Zubiri on the 12th slot.”

Malacañang, through President Arroyo’s political adviser Gabriel Claudio, also yesterday applauded the decision of the Comelec not to hold special elections in Maguindanao as the poll body last Friday declared that there was no failure of elections in that province, saying when the Maguindanao votes are counted, it would be Zuburi who will be taking the final Senate slot.

Abalos accepted the position paper submitted by poll officers in the province that elections were held, presenting as evidence the claimed “minutes of the meeting” which was submitted as an “annex” but which Abalos admitted he had not seen, or read.

The Maguindanao election documents were said to have been lost, as claimed by the Provincial Election Chairman Lintang Bedol, but Abalos told the media there are several municipalities in that province that would have the poll documents. He announced that he and the other Comelec commissioners will be going to Maguindanao to check on the documents.

Sources in the opposition, however, told the Tribune that, as it has been well over a month since the polls were held, the chances of whatever election documents will be found in Maguindanao

would be manufactured documents.

The same sentiment was expressed by opposition lawyer Sixto Brillantes after Abalos’ announcement of a possible canvass of the votes by a special board of canvassers.

The opposition has called for the Comelec to set aside the Maguindanao votes.

In a text message sent to reporters, Claudio said that with the Comelec sitting as the National Board of Canvassers counting all the votes being contested by the opposition, there is no doubt that Zubiri would win the last Senate slot.

“We are seeing that the declaration of no election failure in Maguindanao brings us strategically closer to Migz’s winning the 12th senatorial seat,” he said, stressing that as the opposition did not call for a failure of an election in Maguindanao, TU will not contest a canvassing of the Maguindanao votes where the TU had a sweeping 12-0 victory, blanking out 19 other senatorial bets, and with TU bet Luis “Chavit” Singson, a Christian, topping the Maguindanao vote.

“We are hoping that previous findings of a TU sweep in Maguindanao can now be finally validated, acknowledged and canvassed upon due verification by Comelec through the most democratic, fair and transparent means possible,” Claudio said in maintaining their previous stand that the Palace and its team have not engaged in any form of fraud through the dagdag bawas scheme (vote shaving and padding).

The political adviser said the decision of the Comelec also absolved the government from sweeping allegations of the GO that Malacañang engaged in cheating to push more TU bets in the Magic 12 Senate slate. The recent electoral exercise produced 8-2-2, or eight from GO, two for TU and two independents.

“It (Comelec decision) is also a vindication of the local officials who won and have been proclaimed as well as the electorate of Maguindanao who have been maligned by sweeping allegations of electoral fraud in the province,” Claudio said.

But the Kontra Daya spokesman criticized Comelec’s handling of Bedol, head of the Maguindanao Board of Canvassers.

“Bedol disappeared for some time then mysteriously reappeared saying the municipal certificates of canvass (CoC) were stolen from right under his nose. Abalos has not ordered Bedol’s suspension pending a thorough investigation and now accepts uncritically the self-serving statement of Governor Ampatuan, represented by his lawyer, that elections were held in a proper and fraud-free way. Abalos also uncritically accepts the statement of the provincial BoC that elections were held on the basis of the alleged minutes of their meeting signed by no less than Bedol himself. Abalos’ handling of Bedol shows his complicity with the kind of vote manipulation and bare-faced manufacture of results that obviously tool place in Maguindanao.”

The poll watchdog criticized the Comelec for its “deliberate effort to confuse the public, especially concerned citizens’ groups, on the schedule of the hearings on Maguindanao.”

Kontra Daya learned that even the party-list group Bayan Muna failed to manifest its protestations due to this. It was pointed out that it was Bayan Muna that presented two critical witnesses to the massive fraud in the province, one of whom has been alledgedly cold-bloodedly murdered.

Dizon said, “Witnesses who have executed affidavits proving electoral fraud have not received any subpoena from the Comelec. They have not aired their stories. The cover-up aims to save Lintang Bedol, Abalos and Comelec itself from any accountability on the Maguindanao fraud.”

Kontra-Daya added: “The Comelec has not valued the life of whistleblower Musa Dimasidsing. The Comelec did not exert any effort to protect his life and the truth about the Maguindanao elections. The lives of other witnesses are in danger and Abalos does nothing.”

Dimasidsing, a school district supervisor, was shot dead last June 9. He was said to have refused to sign a statement that claimed there was no electoral fraud during the May polls. Two other whistleblowers were reported to have been abducted.

Dizon said that if the Comelec insists on counting the CoC from Maguindanao, it will only prove once again that it (Comelec) is the machinery of the Arroyo administration for massive cheating.

Comelec annnounced it will be holding special elections in some areas in the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi, Shariff Kabunsuan in Mindanao and in the municipality of Taysan in Batangas.

In Resolution number 8183, it was stated that theCommission will be holding the special elections in these areas following the memorandum submitted by Commissioners Rene Sarmiento, commissioner in charge for the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) and Florentino Tuason Jr., commissioner in charge for Region 4.

Affected areas in Lanao del Sur are some barangays in the municipalities of Taraka, Tamparan, Marantao, Lumbaca-Unayan, Pagawayan, Tubaran and Ganassi. In Basilan, some barangays in the towns of Akbar and Sumisip will be having the special elections, in Tawi-Tawi, the municipality of Tandubas, while in Shariff Kabunsuan, affected barangays in towns of Barira and Kabuntalan will have the special elections.

The resolution stated that the special elections will be held in June 20. “In order to determine the true will of the electorate in the aforementioned areas in the ARMM and in Taysan, Batangas where the number of registered voters in the precincts which failed to function will materially affect the results of the election for the local positions in both the provincial and municipal level in the May 14, 2007 elections.”

According to the recommend-ation filed by Sarmiento before the commission, it was explained that special elections in some areas in the mentioned provinces should be conducted to determine the true will of the people. It was also stated that “the number of registered voters in the precincts which failed to function will materially affect the results for the local positions in both the provincial and municipal level.”

For the town of Taysan, where six precincts were affected, Tuason also recommended special elections as the results “will materially affect the standing of the candidates particularly the local candidates.”

It has been reported earlier that armed men burned down a school in Taysan, along with the results of the election from the area. A teacher and a poll watcher perished in the fire. Kristine V. Torres, Sherwin C. Olaes and Tribune wires

Back to top

For comments about this website:Webmaster@tribune.net.ph
The Daily Tribune © 2006