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Comelec dares masked whistleblower to come out, specify fraud allegations


(Updated 4:59 PM) The masked "whistleblower" who alleged that fraud took place during the May elections was dared by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday to come out in the open and specify his charges. An apparently irked Comelec chairman Jose Melo told the House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms that the poll body was "ready to answer questions" but that the whistleblower has not given any substantive statement. "He must come out and identify himself and come out with specific charges," Melo said. The only actual accusation the whistleblower made was that the two leading vice-presidential bets — Makati City Mayor Jejomar Binay and Senator Manuel "Mar" Roxas — paid "players" to rig the results of the automated elections and that Binay allegedly paid more, explaining his lead in the tally of election returns. [See: Automated polls were allegedly rigged, 'whistle-blower' claims] Even the committee chair, Makati City Rep. Teodoro "Teddyboy" Locsin Jr., expressed his suspicions about the masked whistle-blower, whom he described as a "guy looking like a koala bear." "I don't like people who wear masks...He did not even give telling incidents," Locsin said, after portions of the video interview of the man were shown during the hearing. Aside from Melo, present at the hearing were several Comelec officials, including commissioners Nicodemo Ferrer, Rene Sarmiento, Gregorio Larrazabal, Armand Velasco, and Elias Yusoph; executive director Jose Tolentino; and spokesman James Jimenez. Comelec officials insinuated that some of the allegations of the whistle-blower were unlikely. These include allegations that "players" fed pre-shaded ballots to machines similar to the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines used in precincts and that the results of these were transmitted before the legitimate PCOS machines could transmit vote results. "Election returns that do not have digital signatures will not be accepted by the consolidation and canvassing system," Tolentino said during the hearing. Each PCOS machine has a specific digital signature, he said. Larrazabal told GMANews.TV after the hearing that the Comelec would be able to know if data were sent twice from the same precinct. "When a machine transmits, there's a signature of the machine so you will know the data was transmitted, using a particular machine," Larrazabal said. "You cant transmit twice from one precinct, there will be red flag...it won't be accepted." Several congressmen, some of whom lost in their reelection bids, also showed up at the hearing. Locsin told reporters at the end of the hearing that lawmakers who have complaints about the conduct of the elections would be given the opportunity to voice their concerns at the hearing's resumption on Thursday. "If in fact there is, as the congressmen are saying, anomalies in the use of the PCOS machines, we have to identify how it was done, or the unused ballots. And then we have to identify who did it, that's the BEI (Board of Election Inspectors), and the BEI must be made to talk who paid them to do it so we can get to the bottom of the guy who was mastermind because the mastermind might be appointed DND chief. We can never tell," Locsin said. Locsin said the hearing was not meant to delay the canvassing of votes for president and vice president next week, as he pointed out that he made it clear that that specific issue would not be tackled in the hearing. House Speaker Prospero Nograles, who lost the mayoralty race in Davao City, also assured that there would be no delay in the canvassing. "My job is to proclaim and proclaim accurately based on accurate count genuine and duly executed canvass papers. That's my job. I'm not going to allow delays but will surely entertain debates," he said in a text message to reporters. "No railroads. If I move fast you accuse me of railroad[ing], if I move slow you say it's a plot to delay, " he added. - RJAB Jr., GMANews.TV
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