Bro. Eddie party says May 10 polls ‘a sham’

The Bro. Eddie Villanueva-led Bangon Pilipinas (BP) party on Thursday questioned the results of the country’s first nationwide automated elections, saying the electronic system was far from being a success as claimed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec). At a press conference in Quezon City, BP vice presidential bet Perfecto Yasay described the recent elections as "a sham" as he and several BP members noted alleged irregularities and massive disenfranchisement during the actual voting. “Any deprivation, curtailment or limitation of such fundamental right upon any citizen through an election system that fails in meeting the standards for the secrecy and sanctity of the ballot makes the exercise of such right a sham," Yasay said reading from a prepared statement. Yasay, a former chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), said they have been receiving reports of a growing number of voters who were not able to vote last May 10. He also said that in certain precincts, the election results showed a much lesser number of votes obtained by BP candidates than the actual number of votes cast in their favor. Present at the press briefing were some people who attested to this. Missing MNLF votes A Kumander Spider from the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), for one, said that in North Cotabato, only 700 votes were reflected to Bangon Pilipinas candidates although there were over 27,000 registered voters there under the MNLF command. “These should have translated into votes for Bangon Pilipinas, as pledged by Nur Misuari," said Spider, referring to the MNLF chairman who had vowed support to Villanueva and the rest of BP candidates. “Bakit ganito ang nangyari? Nasaan ang boto namin (How did this happen? Where are our votes)?" Kumander Spider said. Datu Zaldy Dulom, vice president of the Indigenous Peoples Organization in Mindanao, said he considers the automated system as a failure in Mindanao, noting that the process was difficult and slow. "Nagtataka ako kasi sabi ng Comelec, perfect election. Pero sa amin sa Mindanao, hindi talaga perfect election (There’s no truth that the election was perfect, particularly here in Mindanao)," he said. Looking for answers Senatorial bet Alex Tinsay said they were not claiming they were cheated, but were only seeking answers to their questions. "We are still clueless as to what really happened to our votes," Tinsay said, adding that the Comelec and technology provider, Smartmatic-TIM, are obligated to explain how they arrived at the results. This was echoed by Yasay. "Our objective is not to contest the winners. We are not taking back any of our congratulatory remarks. Our thrust is to protect the Filipino people's rights," he said. Villanueva, head of the Jesus Is Lord religious movement, had already conceded to Sen. Benigno “Noynoy" Aquino III, who continues to lead the presidential race as of Thursday afternoon based on unofficial tallies. —KBK/RSJ, GMANews.TV