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Sunday, June 19, 2005
Election official's whereabouts unknown: poll head
MANILA -- As congressional investigation on the controversial tape linking President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to electoral fraud gets underway, the whereabouts of Election Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano is now unknown.
Garcillano is the man President Arroyo supposedly talked to in an alleged taped telephone conversation.
In that bugged chat, Arroyo allegedly told Garcillano to rig the results of the presidential elections last year to ensure her victory.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Benjamin Abalos Sr. said he has not heard of from Garcillano since last June 10.
"I have no idea where he is," Abalos added.
Abalos said the commission has no contact with Garcillano since Malacañang did not reappoint him after the embattled commissioner was bypassed, along with Commissioner Manuel Barcelona, by the Commission on Appointments (CA).
There are reports that Garcillano was seen in Cagayan de Oro City and that he plans to flee the country via back door.
A Comelec source said Garcillano might have sensed that he will not be reappointed so he decided on leaving.
Abalos said he earlier advised Garcillano not to seek reappointment after his appointment was bypassed twice by the CA.
Garcillano's appointment to the commission was rejected because of his alleged involvement in "dagdag-bawas" (vote padding-shaving) in previous elections.
Meanwhile, Senator Juan Ponce Enrile proposed Saturday the conduct of an independent investigation to determine the authenticity of a tape of an alleged conversation between Arroyo and the beleaguered election official.
Enrile also urged the administration and opposition not to make the tape controversy into a "telenovela."
He said the issue should be resolved in the soonest possible time because it has created a political turmoil that is disastrous to the economy and the country as a whole.
Enrile urged the President to show proof that there was no election fraud in last year's presidential race and address the issue directly.
"President Arroyo and her accusers must resist the urge to keep the people in suspense, as if to keep glued to a running 'telenovela' while the economy and the very life of the nation heads for destruction and ruin," Enrile added.
President Arroyo has consistently refused to confirm whether it is she in a tape of a supposed conversation with Garcillano saying she does not want to dignify something that was illegally derived. (MSN/JPM/Sunnex)
(June 19, 2005 issue)
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