More on election post scripts - III

When Congress put official finis to its joint session in canvassing the votes for President and Vice-President and, then proclaimed Senator Noynoy Aquino and Mayor Jojo Binay as respective winners, the Filipino nation heaved a sigh of relief.

   From the winners and their partisans, the euphoria is the victors' pride and gratitude. For the rest, including the non-political stakeholders, it's more the feeling of "at last it's over". To the losers, the prevalent passion is more than a sigh of grief with caustic psycho effect over the loss.

   The hardest hit is VP bet Senator Mar Roxas and his sympathizers because prior to the elections, there had never been any doubt of his victory. Except for the last week or so, VP candidate Jejomar Binay didn't figure in the race even by a long shot.

   During the campaign period, the fluctuating poll surveys centered on Noynoy Aquino and Manny Villar, although to reiterate, Erap was cocksure that a week or so prior to May 10, 2010, he'd catch up and figure in neck-and-neck fight with whoever be at the top in the presidential race. Erap is not known as a soothsayer or a tarot reading expert, but his prognostication turned out true. If whistleblower "Koala Bear" or "Robin" fingered accurately the "rigging" of election results, had the Erap-Binay tandem likewise with prior knowledge?

   Poor Roxas never knew that political vagaries would descend upon him in triple whammy. Firstly, after spending campaign funds as a presidentiable, on the death of Pres. Cory that drew public sympathy, Roxas withdrew in self-abnegation for Senator Aquino. Secondly, when poll surveys showed his steady roost as top VP bet, Mayor Binay inexplicably caught up with him. Thirdly, because of the PCOS glitches and alleged "rigging", and the "under-shading" and "over-shading" of some 2.6 million votes for him, but declared as "null" votes, the Capiseño "niño bonito" sadly lost to Binay by 700,000 votes.

   When the 18-man panel of the Congressional canvassers denied Roxas' motion to canvass the 2.6 million "null" votes, he had no other recourse but to file his protest with the Presidential Electoral Tribunal. Realistically, the case might not be finished within the 6-year term.

   Even the House committee on suffrage and reforms has already opined that there is no solid proof of the touted poll fraud. In short, the various election protests by other losers and that of Roxas, are allegations, not yet proof, that have to be proved in evidence.

   As correctly forecast by Rep. Abby Binay, daughter of VP Jojo Binay, the Roxas protest would be a "bloody" and agonizing process, "Koala Bear's" whistle-blowing is just that; proving it is another. On the 2.6 million votes, declared as "null" involve a tedious process that may need the so-called random manual audit of the election returns of the 76,000 clustered precincts containing the Roxas'-claimed "null" votes. Collating them is enough Herculean task, plus the sure counter-protest of Binay for similar "null" votes that should also be counted in his favor.

   Are the alleged poll frauds affecting not only the Roxas-Binay fiasco, but also those of other protests, enough blight to put doubt to the legitimacy of Vice-President Jejomar Binay? This early, it may still be contentious, but in the long run, it may die down.

   Despite the great number of complaints over alleged poll irregularities that mostly centered on the PCOS and CFC glitches and inaccurate transmissions of ERs, upon the proclamation of the elected President and the Vice-President, all now appears well. Senate majority leader Juan Miguel Zubiri and Senate minority leader Aquilino Pimentel were effusive over the automated polls as to "teach the nation how to improve the automated electoral system in the future".

   Likewise, the House panel through Reps. Arthur Defensor and Neptali Gonzales II had similar report that we should continue the "automated system" as the "results of the canvass are credible, trustworthy, and acceptable to the Filipino electorate" and needs only improvement.

   See how fickle and forgetful the Filipinos are, and forgiving as well! What had been condemned as "failures" at the start of the canvass, after some few days at the end, the automated poll transformed into "credible, trustworthy and acceptable". How easy, how fast!

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