Friday, November 02, 2007 Threats make new chief hide
ALTHOUGH Lorega Barangay Captain-elect Lorenzo Monsanto denied enjoying the support of a drug lord, he has gone into hiding because of the threats he’s received.
Monsanto didn’t elaborate.
Fortunato Parawan, the incumbent Lorega barangay captain who lost to Monsanto, has alleged that Monsanto won because of the drug lord’s support.
Monsanto, however, denied buying votes and instead accused Parawan of distributing cash to gain support.
Monsanto vowed to run after drug personalities in his barangay once his term starts on Nov. 30.
He admitted there’s somebody in the barangay that is reported to be a drug dealer, but that there’s no hard evidence to prove this. He said he’s not close to this person either.
Monsanto isn’t the only one accused of using drug money to win in the barangay elections last Monday.
Incumbent Carreta Barangay Captain Marciano Ando has filed a complaint against his winning rival for allegedly using drug money.
Parawan has blamed narco-politics and threats against voters from drug lords for his defeat.
He said he received reports that voters were given yellow cards as sample ballots containing the names of the candidates who allegedly enjoyed support from the drug lord.
After casting their ballots, the voters were told to go to the house of the drug lord and collect their money. (LPN)
