Tanod held over vote buying rap in Aklan

ILOILO CITY, Philippines — A barangay tanod (village watchman) was taken into police custody over complaint of vote buying in Nabas town of Aklan.

The tanod, identified as 60-year-old Melchior Magallanes, a resident of Barangay Union, was jailed although he was not caught in the act. Senior Police Officer 1 Nida Gregas, Aklan Police Provincial Office (APPO) spokesperson, said Magallanes might be charged through regular filing of case in court.

Police accounts said that members of the Metro Boracay Police Task Force (MBPTF) was conducting visibility patrol when a barangay kagawad informed them of a vote buying activity in the area. Incidentally, Magallanes, the man accused of vote buying, was in the area.

"He was invited for questioning," Gregas said, explaining that the incident allegedly happened 11 a.m. Sunday, while policemen took Magallanes for interrogation at 8:55 p.m. same day.

Gregas said that a certain Cherly Evangelista, 37, of sitio Laguna, Union village, alleged that Magallanes handed him a folded sample ballot with P150 inside it. Magallanes left after allegedly telling her to give it to her husband.

Meanwhile, Superintendent Joem Malong, Police Regional Office-6 spokesperson, said the complaint against Magallanes was one of the seven reported vote buying incidents in Western Visayas, as of 3 p.m. yesterday.

Four of these were reported in Iloilo and the others in Aklan and Negros Occidental provinces. At 9:50 p.m. Sunday, the La Castellana Police Station was informed of an alleged vote buying at Hacienda Najalinan in Barangay Robles of La Castellana town.

Donato Dumaguit claimed that he was able to capture a picture of an apparent vote buying in incident. He accused a certain Cano Baladiang of looking for him later on, and allegedly tried to ask him to delete the picture, in exchage of money. The police recorded the incident and asked Dumaguit to file a formal complaint against Baladiang. (FREEMAN)