Ex-Army colonel confirms soldiers' involvement in 2004 poll fraud

MANILA, Philippines - A retired Army colonel confirmed that soldiers were indeed involved in rigging of votes during the 2004 election to ensure the presidential victory of then President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo in Mindanao.

Ex-Col. Jose Gamos, former deputy brigade commander based in Lanao, in coming out to tell his direct experience on how soldiers rigged votes in Sulu for Mrs. Arroyo, stressed that he is out to strengthen the military organization and not the other way around.

“I have been receiving text messages from those in the active service, asking me if I am out to destroy the military organization. I am not,” he said.

Gamos, who was in Sulu during the May 2004 elections, said he personally witnessed how Army and Marine soldiers were used to ensure Mrs. Arroyo’s presidential victory over her rival, opposition presidential candidate and former actor, the late Fernando Poe Jr.

He said Poe won the presidential election in Sulu at the precinct level, but lost in the provincial canvassing when the counting was transferred inside the headquarters of the 104th Army Brigade in Busbus, Jolo, following a bomb explosion.

Mrs. Arroyo won the elections over Poe who was then leading her by 80,000 votes in the precinct level.

Gamos’ disclosures supported the statements by former Shari’a Judge Nagamura Moner before the Senate Blue Ribbon committee that former first gentleman Mike Arroyo and former chair of Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Alfonso Cusi were in Mindanao and distributed huge amount of cash to election officers and civilian contacts to manipulate the results of the presidential elections.

Gamos was among the active officers summoned by the Mayuga Commission as resource person in the investigation over the reported poll fraud involving soldiers in some areas of Mindanao during the 2004 presidential elections.

The probe body was created by the past AFP leadership to investigate allegations that soldiers were directly involved in election cheating in Mindanao to ensure Mrs. Arroyo’s victory.

Gamos said all the actions of the probe body then were subdued, which ended in the clearing of all the accused officers behind the vote-rigging operations.

“Instead of being punished these accused officers were even rewarded with juicy assignments while those who opposed the vote-rigging operations were sacked from their posts and given another assignment if not placed on floating status,” he said, revealing that he was ordered transferred from Mindanao to Bicol.

Before he could even report to his new assignment, Gamos who was then on official leave, was ordered arrested and detained at the Philippine Army headquarters, for allegedly engaging in partisan political activity by campaigning for a gubernatorial bet in Sulu.

Meanwhile, AFP Public Information Office (PIO) chief Col. Arnulfo Burgos said that the military organization will always be transparent in addressing the May 2004 electoral fraud and other issues.

Burgos said if summoned by higher authorities, the AFP will furnish the necessary documents needed in their investigation and will make available concerned personnel who are still in the active service if requested for any official probe body.

He said the AFP is also determined to ferret out the truth and it has nothing to hide on the supposed election anomalies committed by soldiers.