EDITORIAL - Election injustice

The administration of justice is not the only thing that moves slower than molasses in this country. Electoral protests crawl along just as slowly, and the results are often tantamount to an injustice.

Consider the case of Katrina Karen de Guzman, who at 18 ran for barangay captain in Valencia, Quezon City in 2013. She won, but her opponent Ma. Anna Millonada got a recount and was declared the winner by a trial court. De Guzman then sought another recount, which was held in November last year. A week ago the Commission on Elections finally announced the results: De Guzman had won by the skin of her teeth, besting Millonada by all of six votes: 802 against the loser’s 796.

De Guzman has only a month to serve the remainder of her term, but she might be deprived even of those 30 days. The barangay hall has reportedly been locked. The Department of the Interior and Local Government, which has jurisdiction over barangays, must see to it that the Comelec ruling is enforced. De Guzman’s camp is reportedly preparing another electoral protest – this time over her father’s loss, again to Millonada, in the race for barangay captain last month.

Their barangay was listed as one of the “areas of concern” in the elections. De Guzman’s story is not unique. Thanks to the snail-paced resolution of electoral protests, many other winners have been deprived of their mandate, including at least one senator who was a victim of vote padding and shaving or dagdag-bawas. De Guzman at least still has 30 days left in her term. Others were declared winners long after their terms were over.

The slow resolution rewards election cheating and encourages violence. It is one of the reasons why some politicians prefer to permanently eliminate their rivals. The glacial pace of resolving election protests subverts the people’s will and undermines democracy. Those in charge of settling poll protests need to do a better job. Surely it won’t take rocket science to speed up the resolution of an electoral protest, especially one involving less than 2,000 votes.