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Monday, April 10, 2006
Cha-cha drive hits bumps in Compostela Valley
By Cha Monforte
DAVAO CITY -- The Charter change express train appears to be making its way quietly in the countryside of Compostela Valley, with municipal election registrars in the province now validating signatures gathered through the "people's initiative" campaign.
But because of claims by the opposition in Manila that the signatures are being collected in exchange for money or foodstuff, village heads now find it difficult to get signatures.
Association of Barangay Captains president Ruperto Gonzaga III, of Mawab town, said two persons from the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines (Ulap) approached him to push Charter changes through a signature campaign.
Gonzaga then called all his 11 village heads and distributed the signature sheets.
He claimed that the Ulap men did not give him money for the soliciting of signatures.
Gonzaga said at first village chiefs were not finding difficulties in gathering signatures from town folk until television news aired the claims of the opposition in Manila that the signatures were being "bought."
"Now people are asking us money or rice so they'll sign the sheet," he said.
P200 per solicitor
Association of Barangay Captains president Danny Reveche, of Compostela town, confirmed he received money from "a municipal local government officer" of the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), which he distributed to his nine signature solicitors at P200 each for two days of signature gathering.
The money, which was only good for his solicitors and not for those who would sign, was only delivered to his house while he was out attending an official function, he said.
For this reason, he said, he thought it was DILG that funded the campaign.
The DILG provincial director dismissed the claim.
Reveche said that in his barangay alone, he was able to gather the signatures of at least 40 percent of their voting population. Their quota was 20 percent.
He said he already turned over the signature sheets to the group who sent the sheets over. But he refused to name anyone from the group.
No big deal
But while it's more difficult to get signatures, no one is stopping anyone from gathering them.
"Nobody here in the province debated and complained about the signature campaign and there's silence here over that (people's initiative), unlike the noise in Manila," said Lydia Pahotahog, provincial election supervisor of Compostela Valley.
She said that beginning Tuesday last week, the 11 municipal election supervisors in the province started verifying signatures from barangays as initiated by pro-Charter change groups. Pahotahog, however, could not identify these groups.
Pahotahog expects to receive the certifications of the summary of signature verifications from the municipal election supervisors next week.
She said they are verifying signatures "as election officers are custodians of voters' records and as public servants they have to comply with public requests."
"We could not refuse but verify the signatures," added Pahotahog.
Pahotahog said they received a memorandum from Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos on the standard procedure of verifying signatures.
Signature pushers
She likewise denies any knowledge on who initiated the gathering of signatures for Charter change in the barangays two weeks ago.
Brenda Salarda of the provincial office of the DILG confirmed that the signature sheets going around are all the same and carried only one question, which is whether people agreed to a shift from the presidential to parliamentary form of government.
DILG Provincial Director Susan Pontero denied reports that DILG was spearheading the initiative and instead pointed to First District Representative Manuel "Way Kurat" Zamora and Second District Representative Prospero Amatong and the provincial chapter of the League of Mayors of the Philippines as the ones who pushed for the gathering of signatures for the charter change petition.
Governor Jose Caballero earlier expressed his support for Charter change although he preferred it to be done through a constitutional convention. (Sun.Star Davao/Sunnex)
(April 10, 2006 issue)
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