Press Release
February 5, 2007

CHEATING MACHINERY IN PLACE DUE TO FAILURE TO
REMOVE ERRING COMELEC FIELD SUPERVISORS

Senate Minority Leader Aquilino Nene Q. Pimentel, Jr. (PDP-Laban) today decried the failure of Commission on Elections Chairman Benjamin Abalos to order the investigation of and to impose appropriate sanctions on field election supervisors who were accused of involvement in the rigging of the 2004 presidential election.

Pimentel expressed alarm over reports that these election officials, instead of being punished, have been rewarded with higher positions and posted in strategic places that are traditionally prone to cheating.

He cited media reports and information from Comelec insiders that these undesirable election officials allegedly conspired with former Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano in carrying out the dagdag-bawas operations in Mindanao and the Visayas. Many of them were among the cast of characters in the Hello Garci tape scandal.

Unless these election officials are investigated, and meted out sanctions or grounded while the probe is going on, Pimentel said the integrity of the May national and local polls will be put in serious doubt.

Pimentel surmised that Abalos cant clamp down on these tainted election officials because he himself is being denounced as an alleged accomplice in the massive electoral fraud that has cast aspersions on the legitimacy of the Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo presidency.

The reason probably is that he could be hit back by these officers if he as much as rapped their knuckles for complicity in the cheating of the 2004 elections, he said.

Somebody who is unclean cannot ask those who are to cleanse themselves. That is too much to expect of ordinary mortals like Ben Abalos.

Reports mentioned the following Comelec field officials who were promoted despite having been implicated in manipulating the 2004 polls:

1. Atty. Francisco Pobe was promoted to asst. regional elections director for the Caraga region. As provincial election supervisor in Surigao del Sur, Pobe reportedly talked with Garcillano regarding updates in the Cotabato election results in the Hello Garci tape.

2. Atty. Renato Magbutay is now acting regional director of Western Visayas (Region 6). In the Hello Garci tape, he informed Garcillano about a woman election official who refused to take part in cheating and who could have gone into hiding in Manila. Magbutay supposedly suggested to Garcillano that the election officers family be kidnapped to flush her out of hiding.

3. Atty. Ray Sumalipao was promoted acting regional director of the Comelec in Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Before this he was provincial election supervisor in Lanao del Norte and he also headed the provincial board of canvassers in Lanao del Sur. Heavy electoral cheating was reported by poll watchers in both provinces in 2004.

4. Another Garcillano protg, Atty. Remlane Tambuang, former provincial election supervisor of Davao Oriental, is now acting regional director of Southern Mindanao (Region 11).

Pimentel dared President Arroyo to match her pledge to ensure honest and orderly mid-term elections and to avoid overspending with concrete actions.

Pimentel said that ultimately, it is the people themselves who can prevent the vile attempts by sinister forces to engage in electoral fraud especially through their vigilance and cooperation with poll watch groups.

The people will have to band themselves to ensure clean elections in May, 2007, he said.

Pimentel said another way to prevent cheating is by appointing an opposition nominee to the last slot in the Comelec. He said another way is the revamp of the Comelec leadership.

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