The Philippines' snail-paced election
By Cher S Jimenez
MANILA - More than two weeks after the Philippines' senatorial election, final
canvassing of votes has slowed amid allegations that President Gloria
Macapagal-Arroyo and her supporters are manipulating the results to try to
improve their candidates' standing.
Despite the slow count, it has become abundantly clear that opponents of the
president, including several surprise
independents, are likely to pull out victories despite any machinations from
the presidential palace.
Arroyo admitted this herself when she told Australian business people in
Melbourne that her senatorial ticket was defeated in the polls but asserted
that she "will not sacrifice long-term gains for short-term political
expediency".
Massive disfranchisement of registered voters, manipulation and intimidation in
polling precincts, harassment of election officers and vote-shaving have
characterized what Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman Benjamin Abalos
Sr described as "generally peaceful and orderly elections".
Canvassing of the poll results got off to a swift start, prompting Abalos
boldly to declare that a partial proclamation of winners, except for the 10th
to 12th placers (12 seats were up for grabs), might take place only a week
after the Comelec began counting, since only a few more certificates of canvass
(COCs) were expected to be submitted that might no longer affect top-ranking
senatorial bets.
But after more than a week into the counting, the Comelec decided to slow it
down, refusing to tabulate some COCs in election-fraud-ridden parts of the
southern Philippines, particularly the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao
(ARMM) and other areas that account for more than 5 million votes.
This decision was also justified with the holding of special elections last
week in 13 towns and some villages in the Lanao del Sur, Basilan, Tawi-Tawi,
and Sulu areas that compose part of the ARMM. Polls there did not materialize
on election day, May 14, as local election officials refused to man polling
precincts because of threats from warlords. There are an estimated 100,000
registered voters in Lanao del Sur alone.
In other areas in Mindanao, the votes could exceed 3 million, and the apparent
slowdown in the canvassing procedures prompted some citizens' groups to allege
that something was being arranged at the provincial level before poll documents
were submitted to the national counting body.
A classic example was the province of Maguindanao, where canvassing of COCs has
been deferred three times because the political opposition is blocking having
ballot boxes opened for tabulation.
Lawyers for political candidates have demanded that the Comelec declare failure
of elections in Maguindanao's 22 municipalities, where there are more than
300,000 registered voters. They alleged that no election took place in the
whole province on May 14, and that if election documents were opened, they
would show administration candidates having a clean sweep of votes, or a 12-0
win against the opposition.
One by one, witnesses and teachers who were deputized to carry out poll duties
came out in public to testify that students and armed men filled in blank
ballots before election day. Allegations of fraud were also boosted as the
accredited poll watchdog, the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections
(Namfrel), which was supposed to get copies of election returns, was refused
documents by Maguindanao poll officials.
In the Philippines' snail-paced manual elections, votes are counted on the
precinct level first then submitted for municipal or city canvassing. Documents
are then presented for canvassing at the provincial level before they are
physically transferred to Manila for a final tabulation.
Even after canvassing almost 95% of senatorial votes, the Comelec has held to
its plan to declare only a partial proclamation of winners, since numbers from
still-uncanvassed COCs can change the fate of those in the tail end of the
ranking.
Election results in six areas where there are an estimated 2.7 million voters
have yet to reach Manila for tabulation, and the opposition's lawyers fear that
the standing may still change except for those whose margin is so high that
manipulation would seem obvious.
Since Day 1 of the national tabulation, the opposition has dominated the top
four senatorial posts, with only two of the administration's bets coming in on
the seventh and ninth places. Two other opposition candidates are on the last
two places of the ranking.
A big surprise in the race was navy Lieutenant Antonio Trillanes, the detained
leader of a 2003 mutiny against President Arroyo. Trillanes has been in and out
of the Magic 12 and, at this writing, is at 11th place.
His name was nowhere in pre-election surveys of possible senatorial winners,
and he never had the chance to get out of his detention cell to campaign. The
only public exposure he had during the campaign was when the military court
hearing his case allowed selected journalists to interview him.
Trillanes depended on his relatives and a few supporters who diligently gave
out limited campaign materials such as posters and pocket-sized calendars
including a few television ads showing a senator and a retired Roman Catholic
bishop rooting for him.
Another revelation in the top 12 is newcomer Aquilino Pimentel III, whose only
claim to fame aside from being a leading member of the bar is his family name.
Pimentel is the son of incumbent Senator Aquilino Pimentel Jr, a critic of
Arroyo.
Analysts say Filipino voters are now more rational about their choice of
candidates so that publicity stunts and popularity seem to have lost their
appeal. They are tired of "old faces" and want "those who could deliver
services", said Ramon Casiple, a political analyst.
While Trillanes is seen as a renegade, people believe that his idealism can
bring the needed balance in the elite-dominated Senate. Pimentel, on the other
hand, has his father's good record to bank on, and his presence would provide a
fresh face to the legislature.
But just like his father, who was a victim of election irregularities when he
entered politics, there are allegations that Pimentel is also being targeted by
cheating operators to place administration bets.
Of the opposition's candidates in the Magic 12, Pimentel's and Trillanes' leads
could still be overturned if votes yet to be canvassed turn out to be favorable
to two administration bets, Miguel Zubiri and incumbent Ralph Recto, who are in
13th and 14th places respectively.
It seems that cheating operators, who are Comelec insiders, are having a hard
time trying to change the tide of the political landscape. The alleged massive
election fraud in 2004 that placed Arroyo in power thanks, it was claimed, to
former Comelec commissioner Virgilio Garcillano promoted individuals such as
church personnel, lawyers and civic organizations to form themselves as poll
watchdogs to ensure that election results would not be tampered with again.
For this senatorial election, operators seemed to be targeting candidates
Benigno Aquino III and Alan Peter Cayetano. Aquino is the only son of former
president Corazon Aquino, whose friendship with Arroyo turned sour after she
asked the president to step down in 2005. Cayetano, on the other hand, is the
legislator who divulged the first family's alleged millions in Swiss accounts.
With the help of new technology such as camera-enabled mobile phones, poll
watchers showed more vigilance in reporting election fraud taking place in
their areas and are resolved to ensure that votes are counted honestly. As a
result, Aquino's and Cayetano's leads have remained strong at sixth and eighth
places.
Election manipulators failed to see the possibility of Trillanes and Pimentel
getting in the race. This was despite some members of the Garcillano syndicate
still enjoying government positions in southern provinces. Discovered
discrepancies in election documents still point to Garcillano's men as the
operators. While the Comelec has already ordered their investigation, there is
little assurance that they will be brought to court.
Last week, Michael Defensor, Arroyo's former chief of staff, accepted his loss
in the senatorial elections, having managed only 15th place. Defensor said he
was conceding to "ease the tension on the ground" and asked his allies not to
commit "acts inimical to the essence of democracy and fair play in an electoral
battle".
Cher S Jimenez is a Manila-based journalist with the BusinessMirror
newspaper. She recently received a grant from the Ateneo de Manila University
to conduct investigative journalism on illegal workers in the United Arab
Emirates.
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