Cops admit vote buying hard to verify

DESPITE the alleged presence of vote-buying in most areas, the Police Regional Office-Davao (PRO-Davao) clarified that they could not verify the complaints sent to them due to weak materials presented by the complainants.

In a media interview with PRO-Davao Regional Director General Alden Delvo on his security monitoring during the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) at Daniel R. Aguinaldo National High School on October 30, the official revealed that no candidates in the region were arrested or fined.

“There were reports here and there but wala pa tay naaresto sa vote-buying (we have not arrested anyone) the official said.

He added that vote-buying is also difficult to prove since the culture of giving money to the voters can be done in different ways. 

“I really believe it is still happening. This still exists but it is not really rampant here in our area. How can we prove or arrest them when there are lots of ways of giving money,” he added.

Delvo also emphasized the implementation of Kontra Bigay as created by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in an attempt to apprehend any public officials or candidates who resort to vote-buying to persuade voters. 

“Sumala pa naa tay Kontra Bigay. Hopefully, kaning culture nato nga buying (of) votes, maundang na unta ni (Accordingly, we have Kontra Bigay. Hopefully, we can stop the culture of vote-buying),” he concluded.

Kontra Bigay is a collaboration with the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission (PACC), the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Philippine Information Agency (PIA), the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI), the Philippine National Police (PNP), and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

Under the Omnibus Election Code of the Philippines and other election laws, vote-buying and vote-selling are prohibited. Violators may face criminal charges, including disqualification from running in future elections. DEF