Blast mars Sulu village polls

A man carries a wounded girl, Marsalin Sangkula, who was injured after a rifle grenade exploded Monday, October 25, 2010 near the Sultan Mohamad Jamalul Kiram Central School in Maimbung town in the southern Philippine province of Sulu during the village elections. (Mindanao Examiner)

An unidentified man fills out a ballot for a boy who was allowed to cast his vote Monday, October 25, 2010 during village polls in the southern Philippine province of Sulu. (Mindanao Examiner)

An unidentified man allegedly caught bringing unregistered voters during Monday’s village polls in Sulu province in the southern Philippines ran away from this man who confronted him. (Mindanao Examiner)

An unidentified man gives instructions to unregistered voters during Monday’s village polls in Sulu province in the southern Philippines. The man was later confronted and ran away. (Mindanao Examiner)

Teenagers are allowed to cast their votes in Sulu province’s Kulasi village during Monday’s nationwide village polls. Minors are not allowed to vote under Philippine laws, but despite this, many were still able to cast their votes in Kulasi. (Mindanao Examiner)

A follower of a village chieftain in the southern Philippine province of Sulu calls on their supporters to cast their votes in Kulasi using only a piece of paper as their identification cards. Many of those who lined up were unregistered voters. (Mindanao Examiner)

SULU, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Oct. 25, 2010) – An unidentified gunman fired a rifle grenade near a polling area as locals cast their votes Monday to elect new village officials in the southern Philippine province of Sulu, police said.

Police said a 10-year old girl Marsalin Sangkula was wounded in the attack that targeted a school in Maimbung town. Authorities said the attacker fired one round of rifle grenade that exploded near a crowded school room where dozens of people were casting their votes.

“We don’t who was behind this attack, but we have doubled our security to protect the voters from further attacks,” said Inspector Nilo Mata, the town’s chief of police.

But before the day was over fist fights erupted between followers of candidates in the village elections. There were many accusations that incumbent village officials were buying votes or had used people from other villages to vote for them.

One candidate who was challenging the incumbent village chieftain said he caught followers of his political foe allegedly engaged in vote-buying and fraud, an accusation denied by the leader.

Before elections were over, poll officials stopped the voting in midday after more melees broke out between followers of opposing candidates and policemen and soldiers had to be called in to stop the fighting.

Security forces also escorted poll officials to the office of the Commission on Elections in Maimbung to prevent gangs from snatching the ballot boxes. Poll officials said they have to close the voting to prevent further violence between opposing groups.

“It was the decision of the Board of Election Inspectors and we have to respect that decision. There were commotion and fighting among followers of the candidates, but we have secured all the ballots,” said Holma Hassan, of the Commission on Elections.

Elections were generally peaceful in many parts of Sulu, one of five provinces under the Muslim autonomous region. (Mindanao Examiner)

‘Whiners who cry fraud deserve to lose’ - Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines — Losing candidates who cry fraud and claim to have received offers to cheat in the May 10 automated polls “do not deserve to be elected” for not reporting the cases immediately, according to President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s former election lawyer.

Romulo Macalintal, who defended Ms Arroyo against fraud allegations in the 2004 elections, Tuesday described as “impossible” stories of fraud attempts now coming out in Congress.

He scolded the complainants for their “sins of omission” for reporting the cases only after they lost.

“You really deserve to lose the elections if that’s what you did. You do not deserve to be elected. You do not have the right to say that you are looking after the welfare of our nation,” Macalintal said.

“Because if you have concern for our country, that would have been what you did—have them arrested,” he said.

Macalintal did not identify the losers, but those crying fraud and alleging offers from poll cheats included Surigao del Norte Rep. Ace Barbers, Laguna Gov. Teresita Lazaro, Quezon City Rep. Matias Defensor and Sulu Rep. Munir Arbison.

Hearsay

Parañaque Rep. Roilo Golez Tuesday said not all statements of fraud allegations coming out in the House hearing were substantial.

Golez, who won his reelection bid, said during the hearing that he was concerned that the formal inquiry had been beset with statements of hearsay rather than of personal knowledge.

He cited the statements of lawyer Homobono Adaza that he had talked to a person who told him about a supposed offer to rig the elections for P1 billion.

Golez said he preferred that the stories be told in their entirety and not left hanging. Anybody who says somebody told him something should name the person, he added.

“If a story could not be completed, it should not be started at all,” he said.

‘Impossible’

But Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez said it was not hearsay for Adaza to say that he had talked to a person and to ask that that person be summoned to the House hearing.

Macalintal said candidates alleging offers of machine-switching or electronic vote manipulation might well have been victims of scams by syndicates pretending to have the means and connections to cheat in their favor for hefty fees.

“It’s a good thing they did not pay up. If there were some who did, they are stupid. They were just duped,” Macalintal told reporters at a Church-organized forum in Intramuros, Manila.

“I do not believe that there was such switching of PCOS (precinct count optical scan) machines or of memory cards. Could you imagine the phenomenon of doing that in every precinct? There could be a pandemonium of sorts. It is impossible that those syndicates could have done that,” he said.

The candidates should have arranged entrapment operations to catch the syndicates, Macalintal said. That would have been “the best opportunity” for them to do good for the nation, he added.

“But what did they do? They go to Congress and when asked who came to them, they’ll say, ‘I don’t know, I already forgot the number.’ My God, this is a very, very important matter and then you lose the number?” he said.

IT experts

Macalintal also decried IT (information technology) experts coming forward with their own theories about how PCOS machines and memory cards could have been cheated.

During the same forum, one such expert, Roberto Verzola of Halalang Marangal, claimed that the discrepancies in transmitted data and election returns spotted last week by the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) indicated that there was a “malicious code” in the PCOS machines that automatically shaves or pads votes for certain candidates.

The PPCRV, however, said the discrepancies were too small to cause concern. Results from 29 precincts of more than 43,000 precincts showed differences in transmitted and printed results.

Can’t be proven

“These types of alleged cheating cannot be proven by anyone who calls himself an IT expert. No IT expert could prove the alleged fraud in this election,” Macalintal said, adding that experts had no evidence to back their claims.

Macalintal said that proving fraud could only be done through a manual ballot count, though he saw no basis to conduct one yet as the validation of election results had yet to uncover major discrepancies. (Tarra Quismundo. With a report from Leila Salaverria)


Link:http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/inquirerheadlines/nation/view/20100526-272068/Whiners-who-cry-fraud-deserve-to-lose

WASHINGTON TIMES EDITORIAL: Obama the sanitizer

Somebody at the National Security Council dropped the ball. On Thursday, President Obama is welcoming Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to the White House for his presidency's first visit by a Southeast Asian leader. The choice of Mrs. Arroyo for this honor was a mistake because Mr. Obama is being used to give political cover for the Philippine president's troubles back home.

Mrs. Arroyo's domestic political position is precarious. A poll released June 8 by the Pulse Asia polling firm pegged Mrs. Arroyo's public approval at only 26 percent. Street demonstrations against her are routine and growing in size. These protests are in response to a dubious mandate following a dirty 2004 election and numerous allegations of corruption against her family and administration. Her husband, Mike Arroyo, has left the country and used doctors' notes to say he is too ill to obey court summons related to corruption charges.

The Philippines has become less free during Mrs. Arroyo's 10-year presidency. According to Freedom House, "Corruption is extensive throughout the Philippine state apparatus, from the lowest to the highest levels. Bribes and extortion seem to be a regular element of the complex connections among bureaucrats, politicians, businessmen, the press and the public." In Transparency International's 2008 Corruption Perceptions Index, the Philippines ranked 141st out of 180 nations on a list in which No. 1 is the least corrupt. The level of Philippine corruption is tied with Iran and Yemen and worse than in dodgy places such as Libya and Nigeria.

The corruption problem is affecting Manila's relationship with other allies. A senior Philippine official told The Washington Times that German Chancellor Angela Merkel sent Mrs. Arroyo an ultimatum last month that Berlin-Manila ties are at risk if the Philippines doesn't pay $60 million owed to the German government for Manila's new international airport. The Philippine government seized the airport and refused to pay a German company -- which is partly owned by the German state -- for its construction after revelations that the contract allegedly was laden with millions in bribes and kickbacks.

There are also serious human-rights abuses in the archipelago. According to the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists, "The Philippines ranks sixth worldwide among countries that fail to prosecute cases of journalists killed for their work." Between 1992 and 2008, at least 34 journalists were murdered in the Philippines; there were convictions in only three of these cases. Four more members of the press were killed this June alone. Opposition voices regularly disappear as well.

On top of all this are machinations by Mrs. Arroyo to cling to power by setting aside next May's presidential election. The president and her allies are pushing to amend the Philippine constitution to change the current U.S.-style presidential system into a parliamentary system whereby Mrs. Arroyo could serve as prime minister. This would allow her to circumvent the presidential term limit which prevents her from staying in office. This move, incidentally, is similar to the strategy strongman Ferdinand Marcos used to stay in power after declaring martial law in 1972.

The relationship between Washington and Manila is an old and important one. After the U.S. victory in the Spanish-American war in 1898, the Philippine islands were a U.S. colony for half a century and have remained a close ally in the six decades since independence was granted in 1946. The current Visiting Forces Agreement between the two countries allows U.S. troops on Philippine soil to help in the war on terrorism and to assist the Philippines with its fight against Islamic insurrection in the southern islands.

But the nation should be differentiated from its lame-duck leader. Welcoming Mrs. Arroyo to the White House only validates her troubled rule. (Washington Times)


Link:http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/jul/26/obama-the-sanitizer/

The Media Under Arroyo: A Legacy of Bloodshed and Repression

President Gloria Arroyo during a meeting Sunday, July 26, 2009 with the Education Task Force at Malakanyan.(Val Escalera)

MANILA, Philippines - On July 27, when President Gloria Arroyo delivers what is supposed to be her final state of the nation address before the constitutionally mandated end of her term in June next year, we expect her, of course, to give a glowing account of her nine years in power.

We have no intention of disputing her claims. But for the Philippine media, the Arroyo administration will be remembered for a legacy of bloodshed and repression, its acts of omission and commission nurturing the impunity with which the enemies of press freedom have operated.

By the time she steps down, Arroyo’s watch will have seen a death toll accounting for more than 60 percent of the journalists murdered since the supposed democratic restoration of 1986 and almost twice that under the 14-year Marcos dictatorship.

Only in three cases have we seen convictions under her term, but only of the gunmen, none of the masterminds.

As for repression, it can be argued that no administration has shown such open contempt and hostility toward media or been so cavalier with the constitutionally guaranteed rights to freedom of the press and of expression than this one.

How else would one interpret then Justice secretary Raul Gonzalez’s quip that most of the slain journalists were either womanizers or involved in drunken revelry, or First Gentleman Mike Arroyo’s making the then dying Dipolog broadcaster Klein Cantoneros an example of what befalls supposedly irresponsible media practitioners during a speech before the Negros Press Club a few years back?

No government since the dictatorship has attempted a wholesale clampdown on the media as Arroyo’s did during the short-lived state of national emergency she declared in 2006.

Not only did her storm troopers raid the Tribune and tramp threateningly through the parking lots of the two major broadcast networks, Cabinet Secretary Ricardo Saludo even had the temerity to threaten the takeover of a network that was interviewing live because it had allowed a military mutineer to say his piece.

And who can forget the sight of some 50 journalists marched off to a police camp in the aftermath of the Manila Peninsula takeover, their sole crime the performance of their duties; or the brief detention of as many journalists covering the humanitarian crisis in central Mindanao by Army soldiers in Maguindanao province?

It has also been under this administration that security forces have openly branded media organizations as “enemies of the state,” as the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces of the Philippines did in its infamous “Knowing the Enemy” PowerPoint presentation in 2005, and the Army’s 10th Infantry Division with its recently discovered order of battle.

We would like to stress here that we have received reliable reports that, notwithstanding the military’s promise that it would pull the “Knowing the Enemy” presentation, it has continued to be shown in schools and urban poor communities in Metro Manila.

Neither did Arroyo lift a hand when her husband wielded the antiquated libel law like a bludgeon, filing multiple suits against 46 journalists in what was a clear abuse of his powers and privileges.

Nor did Arroyo rein in House Speaker Prospero Nograles from using the same law to torment broadcaster Alex Adonis.

Neither has she shown any inclination to exercise her influence over her congressional allies to stop them from further pushing the right of reply bill, which would place control of media content in the hands of politicians hungry for power and fame.

This administration’s animosity toward freedom of the press and of free expression takes other forms as well, such as the censorship and prior restraint exercised by the Movie and Television Review and Classification Board in requiring public affairs programs to submit their tapes for review before these can be aired, or slapping “X” ratings on films critical of government.

It should also be stressed that under the nearly nine years of the Arroyo administration, no measure has been passed to improve the living and working conditions of journalists and media workers. Most of them suffer low wages and lack of job security and benefits amid the growing risks of attacks and killings, especially in the provinces.

If the Philippine media remain free, it is no thanks to this administration’s lip service professions of respect for the freedoms of the press and free expression but rather to the tenacity with which Filipino journalists have resisted all attempts to cow them into submission and silence.

It is a tenacity that will see the independent Philippine media remain so on the very day Arroyo steps down from power and beyond.


Signed by the NUJP National Directorate, 2008-2010:

Nestor Burgos (Philippine Daily Inquirer), chairperson
Nonoy Espina (freelance), vice chairperson
Sonny Fernandez (ABS-CBN), secretary-general
Alwyn Alburo (GMA7), deputy secretary-general
Rowena Paraan (PCIJ), treasurer
Marlon Ramos (Philippine Daily Inquirer), auditor
Julie Alipala (Philippine Daily Inquirer), director
Day Caluza (Philippine Daily Inquirer), director
Cheryl Fiel (davaotoday.com), director
Jun Godoy (dxOC), director
John Heredia (Abri Gana Productions, Capiz), director
Danny Lucas (ABS-CBN), director
Ilang-Ilang Quijano (Pinoy Weekly), director
Arnell Ozaeta (dzMM), director
May Rodriguez (freelance), director

Controversy, suspicions surround proposed change in Philippine Constitution

MANILA, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 25, 2008) – A Filipino lawmaker on Tuesday accused the Arroyo government of pushing for amendments in the Constitution to prolong the President into power.

President Gloria Arroyo is to step down in 2010 when her term ends, but her allies in Congress, led by House Speaker Prospero Nograles, are campaigning to amend the Constitution and at one point proposed to turn the lower house into a constituent assembly that would tackle changes in the fundamental laws on the land.

Rep. Liza Maza said moves to amend the Constitution being pursued in the lower house reek of evil motives and should immediately be blocked. Political activists continue to hold sporadic rallies in front of Nograles’ congressional office in Davao City to condemn the proposed charter change.

”It is greed and guilt that is behind the moves to amend the Constitution as well as desperate attempts to extend their terms beyond 2010,” Maza, who is also Assistant Minority Leader in the House of Representatives, said.

Maza, who belongs to the militant party-list group called Gabriela, said President Arroyo and her allies have not been cleared of allegations of kickbacks and corruption in any of the impeachment hearings and committee investigations in both Congress and the Senate since 2001.

Rep. Jose de Venecia, a former House Speaker and a one time ally of President Arroyo, has accused her of bribery, saying, she tried to bribe him to put off support for the impeachment complaint against her.

De Venecia has testified Monday against the President in congressional hearings on another impeachment complaint. Other lawmakers also accused the President of bribery, corruption, violation of the constitution and betrayal of public trust.

President Arroyo’s spokesmen strongly denied all the accusations against the embattled leader, who was also accused of poll fraud in the 2004 national elections against her closest rival, Fernando Poe Jr.

Maza said: “President Arroyo cannot just simply escape the charges against her. She should be held accountable for the strings of cases which include betrayal of public trust, culpable violations of the Philippine Constitution, bribery and graft and corruption, all of which glaringly constitute grounds for her impeachment.”

She said other lawmakers from the progressive party-list bloc are poised to frustrate all moves to amend the Constitution.

”The move to change the charter will only serve the vested interests of the Arroyo administration. The urgent clamor for Charter change exists only in Malacañang and its allies. The latest IBON nationwide survey showed that 77% of Filipino people reject such scheme to amend the Constitution. It is the last thing that the people need,” Maza said.

She was referring to a nationwide survey conducted this October by the independent IBON Foundation which showed that majority of Filipinos continue to reject moves to amend the Constitution.

The IBON survey was conducted nationwide from October 1 to 10 with 1,494 respondents from various sectors. The survey used a multi-stage probability sampling scheme with a margin of error of plus or minus three percent.

President Gloria Arroyo's allies in Congress have proposed to change the system of government from presidential to parliamentary or federalism.

Militant groups and political activists have previously accused Arroyo of using the peace talks with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front to amend the Constitution and eventually prolong her to stay into power. But since the peace talks had collapsed, Arroyo’s allies are now saying that the change in the Constitution is needed to introduce reforms in the economy, among others.

Under the presidential form of government, Arroyo is allowed only one six-year term. In the charter change proposal suggested by her political allies who dominate Congress, she can be elected as prime minister should Congress dissolve the Senate and change the system of government to parliamentary and eventually prolong her into power beyond 2010.

Many Filipinos said they would oppose any term extension of Arroyo beyond 2010.
Arroyo deposed President Joseph Estrada in a people power revolution in 2001, but corruption scandals in her government and allegations of poll fraud has made her extremely unpopular.

Recent corruption scandals besetting the Arroyo administration have led most Filipinos to call for the President to step down, according to another IBON survey.

Asked if they were aware of calls made recently by members of the Church and other sectoral groups for President Arroyo to resign from office and face corruption charges leveled against her, 75% of the total 1,503 survey respondents said yes.

Of these, 77.4% said they agreed with such call to step down.

Various interfaith and sectoral groups such as Solidarity Philippines, Concerned Citizens Group, United Church of Christ in the Philippines, among others, have called for a rejection of what they called as Arroyo’s morally bankrupt government. (Mindanao Examiner)

Philippine Coup Fails-Corruption Continues! The Imprudent Observer

Philippine troops and SWAT teams stormed a five-star hotel that dissident military officers had commandeered after walking out of a coup trial. The military officers have insisted their aim is to end the blatant corruption of President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo’s government.

They want her to resign in order to create a government that is both legitimate and honest. Their coup was supported by several political leaders including former Vice President Teofisto Guingona. Arroyo in a defiant response said the coup members would be held “accountable” and there would be swift justice.

The coup members had literally walked out of their trial accompanied by dozens of military sympathizers including General Danio Lim and went to the hotel. They claim Arroyo stole an election and has been manipulating the political process since taking office.

Unfortunately, the Philippines has been the scene of continual fights over the honesty of its government. This has led members of the military to become involved in political affairs.

The nation confronts a Muslim led insurgency in southern regions which has gone on for years. In the midst of this problem is the ongoing belief that President Arroyo is doling out money to politicians and has allowed corruption to become a hallmark of her administration. (Fred Stopsky)

Crush Uprising! RP Military Chief Tells Troops

Philippine military chief General Hermogenes Esperon, who is visiting troops in Zamboanga City in Mindanao island, speaks on his mobile phones Thursday Nov. 30, 2007 after a group of soldiers led by Army Brigadier General Danilo Lim and opposition Senator Antonio Trillanes and hundreds of civilian supporters headed by former Vice President Teofisto Guingona marched in Manila and called on the military to withdraw its support from President Gloria Arroyo. Trillanes and Lim, who previously accused Arroyo of corruption and cheating in the May 2004 elections, are facing coup d'etat charges following a failed coup attempt in February 2006. (Mindanao Examiner Photo Service)

MANILA, Philippines (Mindanao Examiner / Nov. 29, 2007) – Philippine military chief General Hermogenes Esperon vowed Thursday to crush an uprising in Manila.

Opposition Senator Antonio Trillanes and Army Brigadier General Danilo Lim led a group of soldiers and civilian supporters to a long march that ended in the posh Manila Peninsula hotel in Makati where they called for Arroyo’s resignation.

Among those who joined Trillanes and Lim was former Philippine Vice President Teofisto Guingona and leaders of civil society groups opposed to Arroyo’s rule.

Both Trillanes and Lim were implicated in previous attempt to oust Arroyo, who they accused of corruption and fraud in the May 2004 elections.

“We are trying to make plans here. I want to appeal for calmness and for the public not to allow to be hoodwinked by these people, Trillanes and Lim. We must not allow them to grab power,” Esperon said.

Esperon was in Zamboanga City visiting troops when news of the uprising broke out in a middle of meeting at the Western Mindanao Command headquarters.

Trillanes and Lim have urged the Armed Forces of the Philippines to withdraw its support from the Arroyo administration.

Esperon said the military is control of the situation and ordered security forces to resolve the situation without bloodshed.

“There is a confrontational effort and I have given instructions to ground commanders to address the situation without bloodshed, but if situation arises we will do what is necessary. We intend to terminate this situation as soon as possible,” he said.

“Rest assured we are in full control of the situation. Just be calm about it and we should be able to resolve this situation. It is something we can address.”

Esperon said the AFP is solid behind Arroyo and would not allow the uprising to continue. He said the military has been put in red alert and warned soldiers not to support Trillanes and Lim.

“There is no need to conduct loyalty check among troops. I am in constant touch with senior commanders. I salute the solidarity of the Armed Forces of the Philippines. We are intact and ready to enforce legal actions to address the situation in Makati,” he said.

Government spokesmen also taunted Guingona, saying, he was too frail to be jailed.

Guingona is one or Arroyo’s most vocal critic and had previously joined protest rallies in Manila. (Mindanao Examiner)

Poll Fraud Witness Is Murdered In Southern Philippines

MAGUINDANAO (Mindanao Examiner / 10 Jun) – Unidentified armed men shot dead a local government school teacher who allegedly exposed the massive cheating in last month’s national and local polls, police said Sunday.

Police said Musa Dimasidsing, the province’s school district supervisor, was killed late Saturday inside a school in his hometown in North Cotabato.

Dimasidsing, who served as election officer, was one of those that said polls in the province were dirty and marred with cheating and fraud.

Maguindanao, one of four other provinces under the Muslim autonomous region, is where President Gloria Arroyo’s senatorial candidates won by a landslide.

Police said it is still investigating the attack.

The killing is believed connected to Dimasidsing’s exposé to prevent him from testifying about the cheating and fraud allegedly perpetrated by candidates. (Mindanao Examiner)

Police, Military Tighten Security In Shariff Kabunsuan Province

COMELEC officers headed by lawyer Jocelyn De Mesa (2nd from left) reads the COC results during the Provincial Canvassing in ARMM Sanggunian Panlalawigan office, at the back are the representatives of the candidates with their Legal Council and watchers. The Provincial Canvassing held inside the Mindanao State University Maguindanao in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Shariff Kabunsuan Province.

The military tighten their security during the Provincial Canvassing because before the canvassing there is a grenade launcher explosion and strafing incident happened near the area. Another Gubernatorial candidate Tocao Mastura's and supporters denounce the canvassing because MSU Maguindanao is Datu Bimbo Sinsuat his political opponent territory.

A family walks in the isle were one of the tanks park near the Sanggunian Panlalawigan Office were the Provincial canvassing is on going. The military tighten their security during the Provincial Canvassing because before the canvassing there is a grenade launcher explosion and strafing incident happened near the area at 2am in the early morning. (Mindanao Examiner Photos/Mark Navales)

COTABATO CITY (Mindanao Examiner / 31 May) – Philippine authorities tightened security in the southern province of Shariff Kabunsuan due to rising tension between supporters of opposing politicians.

Canvassing of votes in the May 14 national and local polls in the province has been disrupted many times by violence.

An explosion on Wednesday in the province sent policemen and soldiers scampering to secure vital government installations.

Army Col. Mario Mendoza, commander of the 603rd Infantry Brigade, said he deployed troops to help local policemen secure the province, one of five under the Muslim autonomous region, from further violence and to allow the canvassing of the Commission on Elections.

Politicians accused each other of fraud and cheating to win the elections, especially in the gubernatorial race.

Regional police commander, Chief Supt. Joel Goltiao, said they have put up road blocks and checkpoints to prevent the entry of illegal weapons that can be used to stir more violence in the province.

“I am really dismayed about the election here in Shariff Kabunsuan because of very obvious and rampant vote-buying during the election.”

“I personally saw ballot boxes brought to the Maguindanao provincial capitol before they bring them to the Mindanao State University where the canvassing is done” one village elder, Datu Kali, told the independent regional newspaper, the Mindanao Examiner.

Thousands of people held a rally on Tuesday to protest allegations by the opposition of massive cheating and fraud in the province.

Provincial elections chief, lawyer Jocelyn de Mesa, said they would continue the canvassing despite the tension in Shariff Aguak. (Becky de Asis, Special to the Mindanao Examiner)

Special Polls In Mindanao Marred With Fraud, Cheating And Violence

Special Election in Lanao del Sur province in southern Philippines on Saturday, 26 May 2007. The congressional and local elections, covering 13 towns in the Muslim-majority province are held under heavy security to avert possible violence after authorities suspended the 14 May national mid-term polls due to threats of violence from armed gangs and political warlords.

(Mindanao Examiner Photo Service/Mark Navales)

LANAO DEL SUR (Mindanao Examiner / 26 May) – Armed clashes and violence marred Saturday’s special elections in the Muslim autonomous province of Lanao del Sur in southern Philippines, officials said.

Three government soldiers guarding the polls were killed and three others, including two civilians, were injured in separate attacks in the province.

The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) held special polls in 13 towns in Lanao del Sur where massive fraud and cheating had been reported by an independent elections watchdog, the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV).

Tension was high before and after elections in the province where gunmen randomly attacked polling places with grenades and rifle fires.

There were no reports of arrests, but authorities blamed armed supporters of politicians as behind the attacks.

Fighting between policemen and armed gangs erupted in the towns of Kapay, Butig and Pualas and that an undetermined number of election inspectors were reported missing.

It was unknown whether they had been abducted or hiding for fear they would be coerced into siding with politicians.

Many villagers said they failed to cast their votes because of the presence of gunmen, who were followers of opposing politicians.

The military said unidentified gunmen attacked the municipal hall of Masiu.

“They fired two rounds of mortar rockets. There were no reports of casualties,” military spokesman Lt. Col. Bartolome Bacarro told the independent regional newspaper, the Mindanao Examiner.

Other reports said there were attempts by armed men to seized ballot boxes in Lanao del Sur. Poll watchers of opposing politicians also engaged in street brawls.

But COMELEC Commissioner Rene Sarmiento insisted the polls were peaceful. “It is generally peaceful,” he said.

But the police said it recorded more than a dozen rocket and grenade attacks in Lanao del Sur during special elections.

On Friday, one soldier was also killed and two civilians had been wounded in separate gun attacks in the towns of Tugaya and Pualas towns.

The head of the PPCRV, Tita de Villa, who was monitoring the polls in Lanao del Sur, said she was a witness to massive cheating and fraud in the province.

She claimed she saw one election inspector hid official ballots inside her bag and that in other polling areas there were two sets of voters’ lists.

“You can’t really vote freely because everybody is at your neck. The climate is impossible for people to vote freely and orderly. From what we see, I think there will be failure of elections again,” De Villa said.

Police forces also guarded the towns of Butig and Pualas and other areas where Moro Islamic Liberation Front rebels are actively operating. Authorities fear the rebels may side with politicians allied with the MILF.

But the MILF said security forces should keep a close watch on private armies and goons of politicians who were behind attempts to sabotage the elections. The MILF said it does not take part in any Filipino elections.

“The MILF has a strict policy about Philippine elections. We do not take part in any elections or in partisan politics and our members have strict orders to stay inside their camps,” rebel spokesman Eid Kabalu told the Mindanao Examiner in a separate interview.

Manila is currently negotiating peace with the MILF, the country’s largest Muslim rebel group, since 2001. (With reports from Mark Navales, Becky de Asis, Merlyn Manos and Juan Magtanggol)