Reluya files complaint against BEI chairman

CEBU, Philippines - A defeated vice-mayoral candidate of San Fernando, Cebu has filed an administrative complaint against a chairman of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) over “missing ballots” in her assigned precinct. 

In his complaint filed to the Commission on Elections and the Office of the Ombudsman, Ricardo Reluya alleged that Sonia Monterona Lauronal of Sitio Suba, Barangay Sangat, San Fernando who is the chairman of the BEIs in clustered precinct no. 37 in San Fernando, committed gross negligence after ballots in her precinct could not be found.

 â€œIn clustered precinct No. 37, wherein Ms. Lauronal was in-charge, the ballots representing the valid votes cast in the last elections (May 13, 2013) are all missing and nowhere to be found,” he said.

Earlier, Reluya through lawyer Jennie Aclan filed an election protest before the court against Vice Mayor-elect Miguel Antonio “Mikko” Canoy.

The case was raffled before the sala of Judge Raphael Yrastorza of Regional Trial Court Branch 14.

During the revision of ballots, Reluya stressed that the committee did not find a single ballot upon opening the ballot box for clustered precinct No. 37.

“The total number of votes cast in that ballot box was supposedly 776 and therefore there should have been 776 ballots inside that box. However it was found barren of any of those long ballots at all,” the complaint read.

Under the general instructions of the Commission on Elections (Comelec), the chairman of the BEIs is primarily in-charge in the conduct of voting in the polling place and also administers the electronic counting of votes, including the testing and sealing of the PCOS.

Also, the chairman personally delivers the ballot boxes to the municipal treasurer after the voting process and complies with other procedural requirements.

With this, Reluya said Lauronal has direct responsibility of the ballots from the start of the Election Day until all are delivered to the municipal treasurer.

“There has therefore been a serious irregularity or at least a wanton negligence on the part of the BEI in performing their responsibilities,” the complainant said, adding that in the particular clustered precinct, he garnered more votes compared to Canoy.

“This coincidence of my lead in votes in said clustered precinct and the missing ballots cannot just be taken lightly. This is more than just a suspicious coincidence especially considering that less than a thousand votes come between the other candidate and me,” said Reluya, who got 15,468 votes while Canoy got 16,333 votes.

“With the 776 ballots missing, clearly there has been some misfeasance on the part of the BEI because these ballots were under the direct watch of the BEI all the time,” he added.

Lauronal is set to answer the complaint.  (FREEMAN)