Enrile opposes creation of panel to probe alleged '04 poll fraud

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile is opposed to the creation of a fact-finding commission that would look into the reported rigging of the 2004 elections that allegedly benefited then-President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo. "Sa aking paningin, dapat ‘wag nang gawin ‘yun (In my opinion, there is no need to do that)," Enrile told reporters in an interview on Wednesday. The creation of the fact-finding committee was proposed by Sen. Francis Escudero through Joint Resolution No. 1, which calls on both chambers of Congress to form such panel. Escudero was the spokesman of the late actor Fernando Poe Jr., Arroyo's closest rival in the 2004 elections. Enrile, however, said the panel's investigation would serve no purpose. “If it is only to punish for cheating in elections, the case of Maguindanao will be enough. If there was cheating there, that’s a crime," he said. "When you want to determine the winner in an election, especially in a national election, you have to go over all the precincts," he added. Enrile said any evidence on the alleged fraud should be brought to authorities, who should file the appropriate charges before the court. 2004 polls Arroyo won in the 2004 elections after garnering 12,905,808 votes over Poe’s 11,782,232. Poe, who died on Dec. 14, 2004, claimed Arroyo had robbed him of victory. Poe’s widow, actress Susan Roces, pursued the protest, but it was dismissed by the Presidential Electoral Tribunal in March 2005. In June that year, a taped conversation about alleged vote-rigging between a woman presumed to be Arroyo and a man presumed to be then-Elections Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano surfaced. It became known as the “Hello Garci" controversy. Both Arroyo and Garcillano have since denied being involved in the supposed rigging of the 2004 elections. Despite this, Enrile said that the Department of Justice (DOJ) should not have Arroyo placed on their watch list as they have no proof against her yet. “Not yet. Wala pang krimen, wala pang nasakdal. Panay salita pa lang (There is no crime, there is no accused. Those are all talk)," he said. - Kimberly Jane Tan/KBK, GMA News