PET urged to direct examination of votes from Mindanao provinces

MANILA, Philippines — The camp of former senator and defeated vice presidential candidate Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. Tuesday urged the Supreme Court acting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal to subpoena election-related documents in Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao and Basilan.

Lawyer George Garcia, Marcos’ lead counsel, filed an urgent motion, asking the tribunal to order the Commission on Elections to submit its findings on the technical examination of election returns in the three Mindanao provinces.

Lawyer George Garcia, lead counsel of ex-Sen. Bongbong Marcos, urges the Presidential Electoral Tribunal to direct the Comelec to submit its findings on the technical examination of the Election Returns in Basilan, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao. | @kristinepatag pic.twitter.com/VMQPNzHU9g

— Philstar.com (@PhilstarNews) March 26, 2019

This latest pleading is in connection with a December 2018 motion where Marcos asked the PET to subpoena the documents in an unrelated protest filed by Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao gubernatorial candidate Sakur Tan.

Robredo had earlier opposed Marcos’ motion and decried the use of the examination from an election protest unrelated to the Marcos’ petition.

The pilot provinces in the poll protest include Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental—the second cause of action in Marcos’ plea.

To note, the tribunal has yet to resolve the second cause of action over the recount of ballots from the pilot provinces.

The recount started in April 2018.

Marcos’ camp, however, asserted their motion is connected with their third casue of action which “seeks the annulment of the election results for the position of vice president in the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Basilan and Maguindanao due to widespread terrorism, violence, force, threats, intimidation, pre-shading of ballots and massive substitution of voters threat.”

Lawyer Romulo Macalintal, Robredo’s lead counsel, dismissed Marcos’ pleading.

In an ambush interview with reporters in an Otso Diretso campaign sortie in Cebu, the elections lawyer said: “Iyon ay para lamang mabigyang katwiran ang kanyang protesta na talagang dismissible na. Kasi base sa mga pag i-examine ng mga balota ngayon, ay talagang walang patutunguhan ang kanya protesta.”

(That is only to give reason to his protest that seems dismissible, because from the examination of the ballots his protest is going nowhere.)

A transcript of the interview was sent to reporters.

He added: “Huwag niyong paniwalaan iyan. Iyan ay espekulasyon lang ni Mr. Marcos at gusto lang niyang buhayin iyong kanyang protesta na sa ngayon ay malapit na sa kamatayan.”

(Don’t believe that. That is just Marcos’ speculation and he wants to revive his protest that is near death.)