Comelec seeks probe into voter’s IDs found near Ampatuan home

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Thursday expressed worries that the 3,000 voter’s identification cards that were unearthed near the house of Shariff Aguak Mayor Anwar Ampatuan in Maguindanao province would be used “to profile" the voters in the area. In an interview with reporters, Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said the IDs seem to have been forcibly taken from the poll body’s custody. "It appears it was not given, it was taken," he said.

But Larrazabal maintained that the election materials would not have an impact on the candidacy of the Ampatuans in the town where the IDs were dug up. "No, it does not (have bearing)," he said. Previous reports indicated that the voter’s IDs were buried in a vacant lot 300 meters away from the house of Ampatuan, brother of detained Datu Unsay Mayor Andal Ampatuan Jr. Andal Jr., currently detained at the National Bureau of Investigation's (NBI) headquarters in Manila, is the prime suspect in the killing of 57 people, including 30 journalists, in Ampatuan town. On the other hand, Anwar is facing rebellion charges along with his father Andal Ampatuan Sr., brother Zaldy (ARMM governor) and 21 other people. Elections officer Larrazabal said the poll body still needs to get hold of the IDs discovered to be able to conduct an investigation and find out who was the designated elections officer in the area when the IDs were released. "We have to get custody of that...and see why was it there, why was it allowed to be taken by some individuals," he said, adding that they have instructed the military to turn over the IDs to their field officers. He also said that they have yet to immediately identify the one responsible for the “loss" of the IDs because Allan Obpon, the last election officer assigned in the area, just recently passed away due to hypertension while he was in Mecca. "We’ll check on it," he said. Larrazabal said that under the law, an election officer can be assigned to an area for a maximum of four years, but added that they can change deployment "depending on circumstances." The poll executive assured the public, however, that these IDs could not be used to directly commit electoral fraud. "That’s just an ID. It’s not an all-access pass. The voter’s ID is just one of the means to identify a voter," he said, adding that if the person carrying the ID does not have the same face as shown in the ID, he would not be allowed to vote anyway. "[A person] can be prevented from voting because of the picture," he said. Larrazabal said they have also yet to confirm reports that there were also ballots boxes recovered in Maguindanao. - RSJ/ KBK, GMANews.TV