MANILA, Philippines – Vice presidential candidate Camarines Sur Rep. Maria Leonora “Leni” Robredo welcomed the request of his closest rival Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. to conduct a poll audit to verify the results of the May 9 elections.
Robredo said she is supporting Marcos’s appeal so that she can cast away doubts and cheating allegations.
“Sangayon ako na may system audit para maalis ‘yung lahat na duda tungkol sa integridad ng proseso ng eleksyon,” Robredo said in a televised ambush interview.
“’Yung sakin lang yung mga ganung hakbang ok sakin iyon. ‘Yung ‘di sakin ok yung nagpaparatang na nandaya na wala namang basehan,” she added.
Robredo further said that the Automated Election System (AES) audit will not only benefit Marcos but also her camp.
“’Yung mag-o-audit, titignan [ang resulta], palagay ko hindi lang siya yung mag-be-benefit pati din ako,” she said.
Robredo also hopes there will be no cheating in the canvassing.
“Klaro naman yung numero pero parang mina-mind condition nila. ‘Di ko alam kung precursory ito,” she said.
On Tuesday, the Marcos camp said it will ask the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to open the AES for a systems audit after finding discrepancies during the tabulation of results of the May 9 polls and the certificates of canvass.
"Overall, there were more than 3.3 million undervotes in the 2016 vice presidential derby and in a highly contested race, we consider the same highly suspicious," lawyer Jose Amor Amorado, head of the BBM for VP "Quick-Count" center, said.
Comelec Chairman Juan Andres “Andy” Bautista said the poll body welcomes the request of Marcos.