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Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Poll body should identify cheaters: lawmakers
MANILA -- Following the admission of Election Commissioner Resurreccion Borra that there was indeed cheating during the 2004 presidential polls, opposition congressmen said Tuesday that the commission should act to identify those who cheated.
This is aside from the impeachment raps being considered by minority legislators against Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos.
Party-list Representative Satur Ocampo of Bayan Muna said while he supports the plan of his colleagues in the opposition to file an impeachment case against Abalos, there are other things that the commission should do first.
"The Comelec should not just admit there were cheatings in the 2004 polls, it must act to identify those who cheated," Ocampo said in reaction to Borra's acknowledging during a Senate inquiry on Monday that there was cheating in the last elections.
Borra and other members of the Comelec should not only admit and identify those who cheated but impose sanctions also.
Another Bayan Muna congressman, Teodoro Casiño, said the admission of Borra, although a little late for the "Hello Garci" wiretapping investigation, now merits a separate investigation.
"It merits another investigation which this time should focus on the admission of no less than a Comelec commissioner. The House should not simply ignore this matter," Casino added.
He likewise supports the move being taken by colleagues in the party-list Akbayan to consider filing an impeachment case against Abalos, who has obviously been "protecting" President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ever since the issue on the wiretapping scandal cropped up.
Akbayan party-list Representative Loretta Ann Rosales said questions of whether to impeach Abalos has long been considered especially when he already claimed that there was no fraud committed during the last elections, and yet Borra made a different claim.
The testimony made by Borra during the Senate inquiry, according to Rosales, will be used against the Comelec chairman.
She expressed optimism that Borra would not retract from his statements and in the end will cooperate with them once they have filed the impeachment case against Abalos.
House Minority Leader Francis Escudero, in a separate interview, was elated by the admission of Borra, and added that more people in the commission would corroborate claims of the commissioner.
"It is a confirmation that our allegations against President Arroyo have factual basis and not merely politically motivated as they would like people to think," Escudero said.
The minority leader said it is about time that the commissioners, including its chairman, should consider resigning.
Muntinlupa City Representative Rufino Biazon, a member of the majority coalition, expressed hope that the opposition would pursue filing an impeachment case against the Comelec chairman who had openly claimed in the past that there was no electoral fraud committed during the last presidential elections.
As expected, members of the administration just gave Borra's admission during the inquiry the "cold shoulder treatment".
Some of them even banked on the claims of Borra that although fraud was committed, not just one party or individual was involved.
Representative Roilo Golez of Parañaque City, for his part, said he could not easily say if he would support the impeachment move against Abalos saying the matter should be studied well first since it is a very complicated issue.
"We will study that. As you have noted, impeachment is a very serious matter. It's not just being supported by the truth but it is also being supported by numbers," Golez said.
But he was quick to add that Borra's statement had placed Abalos in a very dangerous position, especially as the commissioner had said that Comelec could proceed with the verification of the signatures gathered by those pushing for people's initiative to pave the way for Charter amendments.
At the Comelec, Abalos challenged those who presented an analysis of the votes cast in the 2004 elections to show proof that fraud indeed happened.
"(If) these people who claim to have evidence should file a case before us, then we will pursue it," he added.
Abalos said it is wrong to assume that the commission was part of cheating committed in the 2004 elections.
He maintained that there were no "discrepancies" between the certificates of canvass (COCs) that were used in the canvassing of votes for President and Vice President with those used in the canvassing of votes for senators.
Abalos also said he asked Borra during an en banc session Tuesday to clarify if he indeed confirmed that fraud was committed during the presidential race two years ago.
"No (I did not ask Borra to explain in writing), that's not true, I just asked him (Borra) kung ano ang ibig niya sabihin (what he meant). There was no massive fraud," Abalos said. (DBP/MSN/Sunnex)
(April 5, 2006 issue)
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