Opposition succeeded in tainting GMA victory, Joker says

Sen. Joker Arroyo said yesterday the political opposition succeeded in tainting the victory of President Arroyo in the May 10 presidential election.

Arroyo, a member of the Senate-House joint committee canvassing the votes for president and vice president, said he believes that Mrs. Arroyo won in an election that was "on balance, on the whole, fair, except for some anomalies here and there."

"Her victory is not tainted, but I think the opposition succeeded in tainting it, for which they should be congratulated," he told a news conference shortly before the canvassing panel wrapped up its vote count.

Arroyo, who is not related to the President, said opposition members of the joint canvassing committee kept on repeating their accusations of cheating to an extent that their charges of irregularities "sank in the consciousness of our people, and they think the opposition may be right."

But as a member of the joint committee, Arroyo pointed out that he did not see evidence of widespread cheating.

"I am not an admirer of GMA (the President’s initials), and I was prepared to resign as a canvasser if I saw that there was something wrong with the elections," he said.

He stressed that the opposition, during the entire 17-day tabulation process, has not brought out even one of the certificates of canvass (COCs) in its possession and which can be a proof of cheating.

"We were willing to look at their copy and compare it with the copy that the joint committee possesses and with the other copies. But unfortunately, not one of their copies has been brought out," he said.

Opposition members of the committee have been blocking the canvassing of COCs that they think are fraudulent and have been pleading that the panel tally the statement of votes or the election returns. But their requests have been consistently denied.

The opposition claims that while Mrs. Arroyo won by more than one million votes in the tabulation of the COCs, Fernando Poe Jr. would defeat the President by about half a million votes if the votes as reflected in the precinct-level election returns were tallied.

By refusing to go down to the ERs, Senators Edgardo Angara and Sergio Osmeña III said the canvassing committee, which is dominated by Mrs. Arroyo’s allies, "is afraid of the truth."

Arroyo said the only election results that to him were questionable were those from Basilan, Sulu and Sultan Kudarat.

"There were signs of operations (in these provinces) on the part of Gloria (Macapagal Arroyo) and on the part of Loren (Legarda, running mate of opposition standard-bearer Poe) There were two parallel operations. I have a feeling that these same group of operators were employed," said Arroyo.

He was referring to the dagdag-bawas (vote-shaving and —padding) operation.

He said in Basilan, it was surprising that "GMA won, FPJ lost; Loren won, Noli (de Castro, Mrs. Arroyo’s running mate) lost. GMA’s and Loren’s votes were almost the same."

Arroyo also said the opposition would now take their campaign to show that they were cheated to the joint session of Congress, which is expected to start on Wednesday and which will tackle the report of the joint canvassing committee.

"Magiging madugo ang joint session. The opposition will repeat their objections, their manifestations, their remarks. The session will be a repeat of the joint committee proceedings, but with all members of Congress participating," he said.

He also said he does not expect any more surprises from the opposition.

"Their lawyers walked out of the canvass, and that did not create the shock and impact that they had hoped for. I think they have nothing more up their sleeve," he said.

He said he does not expect a "double proclamation" of Mrs. Arroyo and Poe.

"They will not proclaim FPJ. That would be ridiculous," he said.