Destruction of ballot box padlocks probed

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) ordered yesterday an investigation into the discovery of some 500 official Comelec padlocks in Sultan Kudarat which were destroyed to open ballot boxes in the custody of election officers.

Comelec Commissioner Mehol Sadain, who is in-charge of Region 12, issued a memorandum directing lawyer Lintang Bedol, Sultan Kudarat election supervisor, to look into how the padlocks were destroyed with the use of an acetylene torch and sold to a junk shop in the province.

The Comelec’s action was prompted by a formal complaint filed by candidates from different political parties in Sultan Kudarat who said that the recent elections in the province were allegedly tainted with massive fraud and other irregularities and terrorism.

Datu Cliff Ampatuan, a People Power Coalition (PPC) bet for provincial board member, said the electoral fraud involved at least 70 percent of total votes cast in Sultan Kudarat.

Ampatuan said they have witnesses who saw how the Comelec padlocks were destroyed and how fraud was allegedly committed.

"It’s our belief that the contents of the ballot boxes were unceremoniously replaced by false ballots and certificates of canvass, obviously a gross election offense fraudulently vitiating the free expression of popular will by the constituents," the petitioners stated in their complaint.

Except for re-elected Gov. Pax Mangudadatu, not a single PPC candidate for a local elective position won.