Reluya still bent on proving fraud in San Fernando polls

CEBU, Philippines - The camp of former San Fernando town mayor Lakambini Reluya will be filing a motion before Regional Trial Court Branch 11 to ask that the remaining 39 ballot boxes be opened to prove election fraud in the 2010 elections.

Reluya’s lawyer, Jennie Aclan, said the motion will be filed today as they have already filed their manifestations and observation on the results of the inspection of the unused half-torn ballots.

Aclan said there are a total of 391 missing, unused and half-torn ballots which is 30 percent of the 1,318.

The determination of the exact unused ballots would determine as to how many ballots were put inside the PCOS machines.

Reluya is also bent on filing administrative cases against two members of the Board of Election Inspectors of clustered precincts 5 and 27 for negligence of duty.

In a press conference yesterday, Reluya said that she is not hoping to sit as mayor, but in the name of justice she will continue the legal battle to prove that the 2010 elections in her town was not clean and honest contrary to the claim of the Canoys.

Reluya lost her second bid to hold the town’s mayoralty post to Antonio Canoy during the May 10, 2010 national and local elections by 1,255 votes against Canoy, a three-term mayor of the town.

When Canoy’s term ended in 2007, his wife ran for mayor but lost to Reluya.

An election protest was filed by Reluya against the incumbent mayor after the 2010 elections.

Reluya, an ally of Cebu First District Representative Eduardo Gullas said that she will run again as mayor of the said town and hopes that what happened in the 2010 elections will no longer happen next year.

Canoy, on the other hand, is reportedly running for the congressional seat in the First District.

The former mayor added that there are now on-going talks that her husband, Ricardo “Nonoy” Reluya, Jr., who is currently the barangay captian of Panadtaran, will also be her running mate.

“Pinag-uusapan pa pero baka nga he will be my vice mayor, (We are still discussing this but there is a possibility that he will be my vice mayor.)” the former mayor said. — (FREEMAN)