Radazas proclaimed winners in Lapu-Lapu City

CEBU, Philippines - Wild cheers erupted at the canvassing center inside the Lapu-Lapu City Council session hall as the entire slate of Deretso 3 headed by Mayor-elect Paz Radaza was officially proclaimed winners yesterday afternoon.

City Election officer Ferdinand Gujilde, who chairs the Board of Canvassers, declared the winners of the May 10 polls at 5:05 in the afternoon after the canvassing of votes in the109 clustered precincts was finished.

Mrs. Radaza and her husband, Mayor and congressman-elect Arturo Radaza, both won over their opponents by wide margins of votes.

Mrs. Radaza got 70,392 votes to the 34, 418 votes of City Councilor Junard Chan. Independent candidate Isabelito Darnayla ranked third with 14,168 votes while Efrain Pelaez of the Liberal Party got 10,168 votes. 

Congressman-elect Arturo Radaza, who is on his third and last term as mayor, won with 70,125 votes. His rivals, former undersecretary of DILG Joselito “Lito” Ruiz, garnered 33,100 votes, while lawyer Eugene Espedido got 20,809 votes.

Congressman-elect Radaza was greeted with a birthday song by the supporters as he entered the session hall.

“Wala ko matingala nga midaog ko. Mura man ko og dili kandidato kay ako gikompanyahan nga makadaog si Paz ug tibuok slate,” the congressman-elect said.

In a separate interview, Mayor-elect Radaza said she has made history in the city by being the first lady mayor while her husband is the first congressman to represent the lone congressional district. 

Paz attributes their success to teamwork.

“We can see what teamwork can do,” Paz said.

The Board of Canvassers was composed of Gujilde, who is the chairman, and member of the Board of Election Canvassers Asst. DepEd supervisor Eduardo Umpad and assistant city prosecutor Evangeline Gicale.

City Councilor Marcial Ycong, who got 75,246 votes, was declared as new vice mayor. He will be presiding over the sessions of the 12th city council until 2013.

For councilors, Efren Herrera got 69,002 votes; Harry Don Radaza, 66, 420; Eduardo Quizon, 63, 884; Eduardo Patalinghug got 63,561; Alexander Gestopa, 63,209; Francisco Senerpida, 62, 174; Rodolfo Potot, 61,738; Queennie Ammann, 61, 505; Melissa Dignos-Digal, 59,637; Cornelio Pahang, 58,598; Florito Pozon, 58,126; and Roque Wagwag, 55,460.

But prior to the proclamation, Chan’s camp filed an “extreme urgent motion to suspend the proceedings of the proclamation.”

Chan and Ruiz alleged that the proceedings of the board are “illegal because the canvassing is a sham or mere ceremony, the results of which have been pre-determined and manipulated by massive vote buying.”

Chan further alleged that the massive cheating committed during the election resulted in manifest error on election returns which is a basic ground for suspension of proceedings in the canvassing and proclamation of supposed winning candidate.

But Gujilde denied the motion of the Chan camp saying that it is insufficient and defective in form and substance.

Chan’s supporters waited outside the city hall in the early afternoon for the results while city hall employees and supporters of Radaza remained inside the city hall, the doors being locked.

Police and a contingent of civil disturbance management unit were deployed to control the crowd and prevent any violent confrontation between the opposing camps. (FREEMAN NEWS)