|
Thursday, May 13, 2004
Administration not into cheating, Palace repeats
* Pangilinan rejects opposition's accusations of electoral fraud
* Pimentel urges tight watch of canvassing of votes in Armm, raises fears of 'dagdag-bawas'
* Bunye tells opposition to leave counting to Comelec; Saludo hopes future protest actions of opposition would be peaceful, orderly
PRESIDENTIAL campaign spokesman Michael Defensor Wednesday reiterated that the administration is not involved in cheating and that many voters were actually disenfranchised in areas that it considered bailiwicks.
This, as a pro-administration senator echoed Defensor's statement while an opposition legislator expressed apprehensions over vote padding and shaving in Mindanao.
Defensor said the confusion over the Computerized Voters' List that Poe's camp mentioned has been a recurring problem. He said the opposition should wait for the results of the official counting before protesting.
He accused the opposition of making allegations of cheating in order to justify a destabilization move that it could be planning.
Defensor also took exception to Poe's complaint that Arroyo won in his own precinct 227-A in Barangay Greenhills, San Juan. Poe garnered only 25 votes in his own precinct, trailing Arroyo (62 votes) and Sen. Panfilo Lacson (40 votes).
He said Arroyo is confident that she won in her neighborhood in Barangay Pansol, Quezon City.
He said Arroyo may have lost in Central Luzon but her win in Pampanga neutralized her loss. He said the administration anticipated where Arroyo would lose so that she intensified her campaign in areas where she was strong.
He said the administration is confident that Arroyo would be able obtain a majority presidency by equaling or topping the 39 percent of votes that former President Joseph Estrada got in the 1998 elections.
Defensor also defended the exit poll conducted by the Social Weather Stations (SWS), which showed Arroyo leading the presidential race, saying it has scientific basis.
The SWS exit poll showed that Arroyo would win the elections with 40.84 percent of votes against Poe's 32.26 percent.
He said Malacañang believes the SWS more than Proberz, which showed Poe winning the elections, because of its professional credentials. He said Mahar Mangahas, SWS chief, is not likely to cheat in favor of Arroyo because he is a first cousin of Poe.
Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye, for his part, urged the opposition to leave the counting of votes to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and help the administration instead in building the nation and implementing its programs.
"The President is reaching out to all Filipinos to leave any residual rancor or animosity behind and buckle down to work and normalcy. As far as the Palace is concerned, we are lining up the priorities that were somewhat sidetracked by the election and gearing up for a big push in the governance agenda," Bunye said.
"It is best to leave the 'counting syndrome' behind because this only polarizes our people at a time when the voting is done and we should be getting back to the business of national development and nation-building," he added.
Bunye said there is no room for premature victory celebrations as the Comelec continues to consolidate the results from the different precincts.
He said everyone should instead be patient and await the official announcement of the commission.
Meanwhile, Senate Majority Leader Francis Pangilinan rejected the opposition's claim of electoral fraud, describing it as baseless.
He likewise challenged the camp of opposition presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr. of the Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) to prove his allegations that the administration threatened voters.
Pangilinan also defended the media of biased report saying the media is only reporting based on the information gathered from official sources.
He also said media entities have free access to information with which they check and double check information before delivering to the people.
On the other hand, Senate President Franklin Drilon has appealed for sobriety following allegations of fraud raised by the opposition.
"This always happens, we have been through several elections and there are always charges of cheating. But this time, it is a little more tense and charges are brought to another level," Drilon said.
He urged the opposition to wait for the official counting of votes to start before making charges of fraud.
Drilon added that if there were cheating, everyone has the right to expose it, provided that there is evidence to back the allegations.
Meanwhile, opposition Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. urged political parties, election watch groups and concerned citizens to tightly monitor the tabulation and canvassing of votes in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm).
Pimentel made the call following reports of possible large-scale vote padding and shaving in the area.
He expressed alarm over a report he received from an informant that there are groups planning to operate a "dagdag-bawas" scheme.
The senator also warned the people against fraudsters who would take advantage while Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos is stricken with illness. "If they persist, we will prosecute them to the hilt, according to the law," he added.
Meanwhile, Pimentel has asked the Comelec to explain why the supposed indelible ink used in Monday's election was easily removed by alcohol.
At least five voters from Cagayan de Oro City approached him and informed him that the ink applied in their forefingers was not indelible. After an hour, he did the same thing and found out that the traces of ink were no longer distinguishable. JMR/JPM
(May 13, 2004 issue)
Write letter to the editor.Click here.
Join the Sun.Star message board.Click here. |
|
[return to top]
[home]
[network page]
|
LOCAL NEWS
BUSINESS
OPINION
SPORTS
LIFESTYLE
FEATURE
|
