Thursday, February 08, 2007 30 mentors can't serve in May polls By Erwin Ambo S. Delilan
THE Commission on Election (Comelec) in Bacolod City announced Wednesday that the 30 public school teachers accused of election fraud by former mayor Joy Valdez during the May 2004 election, will not be allowed to serve this coming May polls.
These teachers from various public schools in Bacolod were also not paid of their services during the 2004 elections as the cases filed against them remains pending.
In a meeting of the City's Peace and Order Council Wednesday at Taberna Hall in Casino Filipino Hotel, Bacolod City Comelec Supervisor Mavil Majarucon said the Comelec's Legal Department in Manila will not allow the teachers to serve until the case is dismissed.
Hearing the news, Mayor Leonardia said, "I pity those teachers. These teachers were just forced by circumstances to go on duty during the elections. But sad to say they have been accused."
The mayor said the new development is just adding injury to the injured.
"But I believe this is just temporary and in the end, they will be vindicated because they are fair and honest. What happened to them is that they have been victims of a sour-graping candidate that instead of conceding has made the teachers as her excuse," Leonardia said referring to Valdez who will run against him this coming May elections.
Majarucon, however, said those accused teachers can still ask for the legal services of the Public Attorney's Office (PAO) because they were deputized as public attorneys.
City Schools Division Superintendent Milagros Gonzales said some teachers are now reluctant to serve this coming May elections because of the present scenario.
Bacolod at present has 254,016 registered voters in 1,697 precincts and 1,181 clustered precincts.
Meanwhile, Comelec-Bacolod is now about 98 percent in terms of cleansing operation.
