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Thursday, July 12, 2007
Comelec on 'shaming' in Bogo: We’ll sue
CEBU CITY -- The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will file a case against the people who blocked the retrieval of ballot boxes from Bogo City, Provincial Election Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano said Wednesday.
Castillano said there will “definitely” be an investigation on the chaos last Monday and that Comelec will gather the statements of Cebu City Election Officer Marchel Sarno and Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) Director Carmelo Valmoria on the Bogo incident.
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Valmoria said the Comelec will be the lead agency in the filing of the complaint and the CPPO, being a deputized office of the Comelec, will gather evidence.
“Right now, we are collecting evidence. We want it to be comprehensive. We want it to be an air-tight case. We need the necessary supporting evidence for this case. The lead agency is the Comelec,” Valmoria said.
Valmoria also said they will try to get civilian witnesses on the snatching of a ballot box from an election officer and the mauling of Sun.Star Cebu chief photographer Alex Badayos.
Based on the initial report submitted by Bogo Police Station Chief Arturo Pacifico to Valmoria, at least five Bogo residents were identified in the attack against Badayos.
Two others, according to the report, were tagged as the ones who snatched the ballot box from Sarno.
Police, however, refused to reveal their identities yet.
Pacifico, in a dyLA report Wednesday afternoon, said one of those who mauled Badayos is a traffic enforcer.
Except for policemen who served as witnesses, the CPPO is still looking for civilian witnesses to help in the investigation.
Valmoria will also request the management of GMA 7 and ABS-CBN to furnish him copies of the video footage of the incident.
Valmoria and Comelec officials met Wednesday afternoon for the second time to discuss the matter.
Presidential Management Staff (PMS) Secretary Cerge Remonde, in a TV Patrol Cebu report, condemned the mauling of Badayos.
“I condemn the act in the strongest possible terms. I would like to assure Alex that he can count on my support,” said Remonde, a former chairman of the Kapisanan ng mga Brodkaster ng Pilipinas.
Badayos was about to take photos of the snatching of the ballot box when supporters mauled him and took his camera and laptop.
He is still confined in a Cebu City hospital.
The KBP-Cebu and the Cebu Federation of Beat Journalists (CFBJ) Inc., in separate statements issued Wednesday, also condemned the mauling of Badayos.
“KBP is condemning whatever forms of media harassment that can hinder its duty and responsibility to give the right information to the public,” the KBP statement said.
The CFBJ, in a statement, also urge authorities to “leave no stone untouched” in the investigation and prosecute all those involved.
The Cebu Media Legal Aid, on the other hand, said: “Justice must be swift. Investigators don’t need a committee and 10 days to identify and charge the suspects.”
Lawyer Eddie Aba, who heads the special board of canvassers and issued the order for the retrieval of the ballots, will file the case, Castillano said.
Meanwhile, Department of Interior and Local Government 7 Assistant Director Pedro Noval Jr. said they will need a verified complaint before they can conduct an investigation on local government officials involved in Monday’s incident.
But Noval said that the Office of the Ombudsman can conduct an investigation even without a verified complaint. (MBG and JST of Sun.Star Cebu)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Iloilo. (July 12, 2007 issue)
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