Whistleblower: Suspend suspects of botched folder deal

FORMER Commission on Elections (Comelec) employee Melchor Magdamo is calling for the suspension of the people behind the botched ballot secrecy folder deal.

Magdamo stressed that with all those implicated in the controversy still in position, it is obvious the poll body is planning a cover up.

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He particularly cited Comelec executive director Jose Tolentino who he stated in his affidavit as the one who approved in the specifications of the ballot secrecy folder that were given to the winning supplier OTC Paper Supply.

“The mere fact that Tolentino and others are still there, it is obvious that there would be cover up. They should have placed under preventive suspension all those involved to prevent them from getting the evidences,” he said.

Magdamo was appointed as representative of Comelec chairman Jose Melo in all the acquisition and biddings of the poll body during the May election. But his been axed following the controversy on the folder deal.

He said that in March 2007, the entire old building of the poll body was burned to ensure that the evidence on the multi-billion acquisition will not be pushed through.

However, Magdamo did not further elaborate. But during those times, the Comelec had been hounded by the anomalous deals and purchases.

In its July 28 ruling, the Comelec en banc endorsed the results of the probe headed by the panel of Law department director Ferdinand Rafanan with the Ombudsman for further investigation.

The en banc also refused to divulge the names of the eight Comelec personnel and two private individuals implicated in the folder fraud.

First poll protest case

In a related development, the rivalry between Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim and Lito Atienza would soon heat up after the Comelec announced that it is taking up the latter’s poll protest case.

Comelec First Division member Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said the case would be the first protest to be handled by the poll body after the successful use of the automated election system (AES).

“This can actually serve as a test case for the resolution of other protest cases pending before the Comelec,” Larrazabal told reporters.

The introduction of the AES has led to the adoption of new poll protest rules, where the appreciation of the official paper ballots will be done along with that of the digital images.

“Since we are automated now, you have to look at the digital image. That’s part of the revision: looking at the compact flash cards containing the digital images of the ballots,” explained Larrazabal.

In a two-page order dated July 5, the Comelec First Division approved the petition filed by Atienza questioning the results of the mayoralty race in Manila.

Larrazabal said the First division orders for the collection and retrieval of all the ballot boxes being protested by Atienza.

The 1,441 ballot boxes being questioned will then be deposited to the Comelec head office in Intramuros, Manila and hearing date will then be set to lay the ground rules for possible recount.

“I believe there is no more way that the (revision can be stopped. Everything else is just procedural, by nature,” said Larrazabal.

Atienza questioned the victory of Lim who scored 395,910 votes as against Atienza’s 181,094 votes.

In his protest filed May 17, Atienza said there were massive irregularities and errors committed in the canvassing and counting of votes that led to the non-reflection of the actual votes cast. (MSN/Sunnex)