Jarque's Story

Why I left the military
by Rene Jarque
USMA West Point Class 1986

Many people ask me why I left the military service for the civilian world. Quite often, I reply "Why not?" in a dismissive tone to avoid a long and impassioned explanation. After three years out of uniform, I think I now have a better perspective to be able to answer the question with more certainty and fervidness.
What drove me to end what some say was a promising military career?
Let me emphasize that the decision to resign was mine alone and says nothing of the profession of arms, which I will always hold in the highest esteem, or about the men and women still in the service. Being a soldier is, I believe, one of the noblest professions, and I am privileged to have been one. However, we all have our lives to live, and mine just turned to a different path.
Many think my resignation was due to pressure from senior officers. Rightly so, as my career was certainly not a dull one. I had my share of combat as a Scout Ranger; had been under arrest for involvement in a coup attempt; represented the government in international conferences; was a studious lecturer and editor of several publications. And I was the son of a general turned communist rebel.
As a young officer, I used the power of the pen to question things that were not right in the Armed Forces of the Philippines--incompetence, corruption, lack of strategic direction, and unprofessionalism. My writings were a voice in the wilderness, but the criticisms earned me a reputation as a rebel officer--too honest and too frank for my own good. I really thought reforms could be achieved through intellectual honesty and awareness.
Nonetheless, I was not coerced to resign because of my critical commentaries. Neither did the situation of my father, General Raymundo Jarque, drive me into it. It was not an impulsive decision but a slow process of maturation and discernment. I realized that the prevailing environment in the AFP was no longer acceptable to my sense of duty and honor, that there was more to life than being a soldier in serving the country and people. To fulfill that, I needed to live outside of the uniform.
My last assignment was as special assistant to the secretary of national defense, to whom I gave my resignation letter. The following excerpts show the mix of hope and frustration over why I left:
"Sir: I have decided to leave the military service. After 16 years as a soldier, I feel that it is time to change course and seek greater challenges and opportunitiesto seek greener pastures.
I feel that the military is already too constrictingand no longer offers the kind of professional growth that I envision. Becoming a general is no longer an exciting prospect for me considering the kind of officers being promoted to general rank. As many officers say, 'snappy, shabby, the same salary at napo-promote din naman'
"I have always believed that being an officer is a noble vocation, but what I have seen are officers who take advantage of the system for selfish and unethical purposes and undercut each other for promotion and assignments. I always thought that being an officer is a public trust--that an officer does not lie, cheat, steal or tolerate those who do. But what I have seen are officers who would not hesitate to lie to advance themselves and cheat the taxpayers of their money.
"I believe in performance and accountability. I believe in competence and moral courage. I believe in honesty and hard work. I believe in transparency and candor. I have found these rare in the Armed Forces and I would like to seek them somewhere else."
Looking back, despite all the hardships and frustrations, I believe it was all worth it. I learned a great deal as a soldier. From the negatives, ironically I learned the positives. From the dishonesty of some officers, I came to appreciate the virtue of honesty. From the corruption I saw, I learned about principles and moral courage; from the hardships in training, about teamwork and strength of purpose; from defeat in battle, humility; from suffering and death, about compassion and mortality.
From the positives, I learned to grow. From honest and motivated soldiers, I learned about leadership; from my fellow officers, about camaraderie and friendship; from the little things I had, about simplicity and frugality. Above all, from being a cadet and a soldier, I learned about duty, honor, and country.
The greatest gift military service gave me was character. Two other important lessons were leadership and the spirit of service. Now that I am a civilian, I value these lessons and they serve as beacons in my new career. They guide me in finding my path down the future. What I miss is the spirit of service, that feeling that whatever you do is something noble and for the greater good.
Today, I sometimes miss wearing the uniform. I miss the soldierly camaraderie, that fellowship which made me feel I belonged to something. I turn to my experiences as a platoon leader and company commander in dealing with corporate leadership and management issues. At times, I long for the simple yet noble life of a soldier.
As the saying goes, "Once a soldier, always a soldier."

(Reprinted from Newsbreak)

Arangkada for June 23, 2005

 

       PAUGAT SA NAMFREL

 

Inanayng nituyhakaw pagbalik ang mga ebidensiya sa pagpanikas sa Mayo 10 sa niaging tuig. Nga, kon di pa tungod sa kontrobersiyal nga audio recording sa giingong panag-istorya nilang Presidente Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo ug kanhi Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano, motimpasaw na lang unta sa linaw dayong katunaw.

Kay way ganahang motoo sa tiyabaw sa tikas sa pilderong mga kandidato. Nasemento nang atong pagtoo nga tungod sa kahugaw sa sistema sa politika ining nasura—nga ang tanang kandidato gipasanginlang pulos nakalapas sa mga lagda sa Comelec—way bisan usang mapilde, ang di modaog segurong gitikasan. Pero mausab ning atong panglantaw kon kadasonan sa mga dokumento ug ubang klarong ebidensiya ang recording.

Kon mahitabo, ang tulo ka oras nga recording mahimong tinuod nga "smoking gun" batok sa administrasyong Arroyo.

-o0o-

Gawas sa Malakanyang, Comelec, AFP, PNP ug ubang ahensiya sa gobyerno nga naapiki sa recording, naduhig sab sa eskandalo ang pribadong tigbantay sa eleksiyon, ang National Citizens Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel). Labi na nga nagpaugat ang nasudnong liderato sa Namfrel pagsalikway sa mga ebidensiya nga gipresentar sa ilang mga representante sa Lanao del Sur sa gihulagway sa labing grabeng kaso sa "dagdag-bawas" sa tibuok nasud.

Giisnab ni Namfrel Secretary General Guillermo Luz ang mga dokumento nga gipresentar gahapon ni Namfrel Provincial Chairman Hadji Abdullah Dalidig sa Lanao del Sur nga nag-detalye pila ka boto ang gi-"dagdag" parang Presidente Arroyo sa mosunod nga mga lungsod:

• Balindong: 3,434;
• Marantao: 5,417;
• Saguiran: 5,523;
• Taraka: 3,952; ug
• Wao: 3,577.

Ang mga dokumento ni Dalidig nidason sa pangangkon sa

oposisyon sa mas dakong "dagdag-bawas" sa lima ka probinsiya ug 20 ka lungsod sa Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) nga niresulta sa pag-"dagdag" og 76,455 ka boto parang Presidente Arroyo ug pag-"bawas" og 41,313 botos gikan ni Fernando Poe Jr.

-o0o-

Niinsistir si Luz nga kon duna may tikas sa Lanao del Sur, di ni lapad ug wa makaapektar sa kinatibuk-ang resulta sa eleksiyon. Naneguro si Luz sa kamakiangayon sa ilang baruganan bisan kon 38% ra sa election returns sa Lanao del Sur ang ilang na-iskutenyo. Ambot duna pa bay motoo sa Namfrel sa umaabot nga mga eleksiyon karong gipagawas nang Dalidig ang iyang mga dokumento.

Usa sa mga anomaliya sa eleksiyon sa Lanao del Sur nga wa mabantayi sa Namfrel mao nga mas daghan ang mga boto sa party list groups kon ikumparar sa tanang botante nga nitunga sa mga presinto. Segun sa PCIJ, 100.3% sa mga botante ang nibotar sa 20 ka party list groups. Ambot nganong nipili ang nasudnong liderato sa Namfrel pagdupa sa kaligdong sa niaging eleksiyon atubangan ning klarong mga ebidensiya sa tikas. [30]  leo_lastimosa@abs-cbn.com

Gloria's "Areas of Concern"

Posted by Yvonne Chua, PCIJ

 

IF the controversial recordings are authentic and unaltered, President Arroyo's chief worry when she was placing all those telephone calls to Elections Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano in late May to mid-June of 2004 was the canvassing in the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Cotabato City and all the provinces that make up ARMM—Basilan, Sulu, Tawi-Tawi, Lanao del Sur and Maguindanao—were at the core of the conversations between the President and Garcillano. 

The talks dwelled on her "40-plus" loss in Cotabato, Sen. Rodolfo Biazon's threat to have the ballot boxes in Tawi-Tawi opened if he were cheated, as well as reports that the political opposition was about to present witnesses on the cheating that supposedly occurred in Basilan and Sulu.

In Congress's final tally, Arroyo won over Fernando Poe Jr. in ARMM, 558,454 to 302,132. She lost only in Tawi-Tawi and Cotabato City. In the June 30, 2004 terminal report of Namfrel, which had tabulated election returns from 82.89 percent of precincts nationwide, Poe was leading Arroyo, 228,567 to 161,067. Arroyo led Poe only in the Maguindanao count, 76,695 to 38,340.

Following the national canvassing, the opposition in its own report said cheating took place in all the five provinces of the ARMM, listing 20 towns where, it claimed, the President's votes were padded by 76,455 and Poe's shaved by 41,313.

Interestingly, the Comelec national office decided to pull out its regional director for ARMM, Helen Flores, just four days before the May 10, 2004 elections and replaced her with the assistant regional director, Renato Magbutay.

A Comelec official in Mindanao said the last-minute change of assignment took Flores and election personnel by surprise. Flores, who was transferred to Western Mindanao (Region 9), was said to be close to Garcillano, as well as to Commissioner Manuel Barcelona, who was the commissioner in charge of the ARMM in the May 2004 elections.

Garcillano and Flores both served in the task force that supervised the special registration in Sulu in 1995. Despite the closeness, Flores was perceived to be "hardheaded" and "di nila mapasunod (they can't make her follow)," the source said.

Magbutay, meanwhile, worked for Garcillano when the latter was the provincial election supervisor of Misamis Occidental, and is described as a "Garcillano protégé."

Although Garcillano was assigned to Southern Tagalog (Region 4) in last year's elections, the calls he made or received clearly indicated he was "supervising" the elections in ARMM. Garcillano had spent most of his 43-year career with the Comelec in Mindanao. He was the commission's director for Region 10 (Northern Mindanao) before the President appointed him and Barcelona elections commissioners in February 2004.

BASILAN

The President's initial concern about Basilan was the reported mismatch between the statement of votes (SOVs) and certificates of canvass (COCs) in the province, as well as in Lanao del Sur (For the Lanao del Sur vote, click here). Garcillano assured her in their June 2, 2004 conversation that "yung ginawa nilang magpataas sa inyo, maayos naman ang paggawa eh (The upward adjustment they did for you was all right)."

The elections commissioner said, however, the problem lay with the military in Basilan. "Hindi masyadong marunong kasi silang gumawa eh. Katulad ho dun sa Sulu, si General Habacon (They don't know what to do, like in Sulu with General Habacon)." He was referring to Maj. Gen. Gabriel Habacon, commanding general of the Army's 1st Infantry Division, whose area of operation covers Basilan, Sulu and the Zamboanga peninsula.

But it was Tipo-Tipo town's election officer, Rashma Hali, who got the President really worried. In two phone calls to Garcillano on June 7, she asked about the whereabouts of Hali, who the opposition said had voluntarily made an affidavit on June 4 before a Makati prosecutor on the poll fraud allegedly perpetrated in the town. Garcillano told the President, "That's what I'm being fearful about. That's why we're asking people to look for her so that we can control her."

The congressional tally shows Arroyo winning 79,092 over Poe's 48,685, even as the Namfrel counted 12,162 votes for the President and 43,821 for her opponent. The opposition alleged "dagdag-bawas " took place in Tipo-Tipo and Sumisip towns, which resulted in Arroyo's votes being padded by 20,060 and Poe's shaved by 16,731. In Tipo-Tipo, the opposition estimated the dagdag at 8,843 and the bawas at 7,495.

On June 5, two days earlier, Garcillano had been burning the lines with a certain Boy trying to locate Hali. A former Comelec personnel has identified Boy's voice as that of Renault "Boy" Macarambon, a Comelec lawyer detailed at the time to Garcillano's office and whom the elections commissioner was said to have sent to the ARMM areas to help him monitor the elections. Macarambon is mentioned in another conversation as having been sent by Garcillano to Lanao del Sur to check the canvassing there.

[Macarambon is still detailed at Garcillano's office. PCIJ called him there three times yesterday, June 21, and was repeatedly told that he was out. When PCIJ called today, we were told he was absent.  His officemates refused to give his cellphone and home numbers.]

Boy reported that Hali appeared to be in Manila and that he had already sought the help of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces or ISAFP to locate her. He informed Garcillano that Hali had done some work for them, " pero limpio ang trabaho nila (but they did a clean job)." Boy then suggested the kidnapping of Hali's family to prevent her from talking. He was advised, however, to first apply the "soft touch" on the family.

In a lengthy conversation with Garcillano on June 7, the same day Arroyo called about Hali, a certain Ruben expressed concern over the supposed evidence of vote padding done for Arroyo in Tipo-Tipo that opposition lawyer Rufus Rodriguez had presented. " Di ba ang gagamiting mag-tetestify siguro iyong against the President regarding the bawas-dagdag na ginawa dun sa ano (Wouldn't they testify against the President regarding the vote-padding and shaving that was done there)?" said Ruben.

Garcillano said that Hali, if she were to testify, could bring no damage to the President but could hurt Wahab Akbar, a gubernatorial candidate in Tawi-Tawi who the commissioner described as first having supported Poe then later switched sides when it appeared that the action star would lose. "She (Hali) has not done anything except kay (for) Wahab Akbar," he said, and suggested that the President should instead advise Akbar to ask his men to go after Hali's family.

The commissioner noted, however, that the situation was turning serious. "Nandun si Lomibao…may isang colonel na nandun (Lomibao and a colonel are there)," he said, referring to Gen. Arturo Lomibao, now Philippine National Police chief.

"Basta't we'll ask somebody to look for her and then get her family," he said when further informed by Ruben that Hali was in Parañaque.

Weeks later, the PNP charged Rodriguez and fellow opposition lawyer Harriet Demetriou with serious illegal detention, saying they had kidnapped Hali.

The conversation between Garcillano and Ruben reveals problems in several municipal canvasses, as the commissioner is heard saying that he wanted these cleaned up. "Kaya kung maaari papupuntahin ko dito yung supervisor, patago ko rin dito sa kin (If it's possible, I'd make the supervisor come here and hide him)," he said.

Wilfredo Daraug was the provincial election supervisor of Basilan, while Borromeo Patangan chaired the provincial board of canvassers in last year's elections.

SULU

The canvassing in Sulu was the main reason behind the President's calls to Garcillano on May 27 and 29 and on June 2.

The first was to inquire if the election returns from Sulu were complete and corresponded to what could either be the COCs or SOVs. Garcillano replied, "Oo ma'am. Lahat ho meron, hindi po naming ika -count kung (Yes, ma'am. We would count them if)…"

The two other conversations zeroed in on the island province's Pangutaran town. Arroyo beat Poe, 78,429 to 60,807, in the congressional count for Sulu. The opposition, however, said cheating in three towns—Pangutaran, Talipao and Patikul—jacked up the President's votes by 17,289 votes and cut Poe's by 13,199. In Pangutaran, the dagdag was 8,000 votes and the bawas was 2,000, it said.

In her May 29 call, Arroyo referred to the opposition's claim that it had affidavits from teachers and the board of canvassers in Pangutaran of how they were made to cheat.  Garcillano again blamed General Habacon: " Kasi sila Gen. Habacon ba, hindi masyadong marunong pa dyan, medyo sila ang umano nun (It's General Habacon, they don't know that much)."

On June 2, Garcillano reported to the President that he had talked to the chairman of Sulu's board of canvassers. "Patataguin ko muna ang EO ng Pangutaran na para hindi sila makatestigo ho (I will ask the Panguntaran election officer to go into hiding so he wouldn't be able to testify)," he said.

During the elections, Pangutaran's election officer was Cipriano Ebron, the brother-in-law of provincial election supervisor Reynaldo Pescadera, previously the election officer of the capital Jolo and who addresses Garcillano as "Brod." Jocelyn de Mesa, a lawyer from Comelec's head office, chaired the provincial board of canvassers.

In his June 7 conversation between Garcillano and Ruben, Ebron's name came up. Ruben said opposition lawyer Rufus Rodriguez might present Pangutaran's election officer to testify on the cheating. But he added that the military had already talked to Ebron.

Garcillano replied, "Di nila makukuha si Ebron…Akin yang tao nay an eh, taga-Batangas yan eh… Kaya kahit pakainin mo ng bala yun, di na magpapakita (They won't get Ebron. He's my man; he's from Batangas. Even if you fed him bullets, he wouldn't show up)." He also asked Ruben to tell the military, which apparently had slapped Ebron, not to meddle.

MAGUINDANAO

Besides Lanao del Sur, the President posted one of her biggest winning margins in the congressional count for Maguindanao, garnering 193,938 votes against Poe's 59,892.

In their June 6 conversation, the President is heard seeking Garcillano's assurance that the documents in Maguindanao were consistent. "Hindi naman ho masyadong problema sa Maguindanao (Maguindanao isn't much of a problem)," the commissioner said.

The conversation then turned to the President's SMS message to Garcillano about the fake precincts in the province, of which the commissioner was suspected to be the mastermind. "Siguro ano, shot in the dark lang yun, but I'm just letting you know everything I find out para we can always make the appropriate remedies," she said. Garcillano informed Arroyo that he would have "all the people around us talk to" General Lomibao, who was then in Zambonga, "so that they will be able to prevent who is going to work."

Based on the minority report, the outcomes in eight towns in Maguindao were highly dubious. Poe scored zero in Ampatuan and Datu Piang, and got as little as five to 174 votes in Sheriff Aguak, Datu Saudi Ampatuan, Mamasapano, Datu Unsay, Datu Abdullah Sanki and Talayan.

In their talk four days later, Arroyo expressed concern over the local canvassing in South Upi town, where the Comelec had proclaimed different winners. Asked by Garcillano which candidate she was supporting, the President replied, " Ay, naku. Ang importante, hindi madamay yung sa taas (The important thing is we don't get affected at the top)," The commissioner assured the President, "Hindi ho, ako ang may hawak nun (No, I have control there)."

It was not only the count in South Upi that was knotty. Problems also cropped up in Talitay town. 

In the June 6 conversation between Garcillano and Wynne Asdala, a Comelec lawyer sent by the national office to serve as provincial election supervisor of Maguindanao during the elections, the latter said Teng Mangudadatu (apparently referring to Sultan Kudarat Suharto Tan "Teng" Mangungudatu)  wanted to help K4 senatorial candidate Robert Barbers. " Itong Talitay tsaka Columbio (a town in Sultan Kudarat), gusto nilang magsubmit ng bagong COC at tsaka SOV para mahabol yung si Barbers (They want to submit new COCs and SOVs in Talitay and Columbio so Barbers can catch up)," the supervisor said. 

[PCIJ called the Comelec law department, where Asdala holds office, three times yesterday, and was told  he was out of the office. We got the same reply when we called the law department today.  His office also refused to give his cellphone and home numbers.]

Asdala said he informed Mangudadatu he didn't see any problem with Garcillano, but with Comelec Commissioner Resurrecion Borra. "Iba kasi si Borra, walang isip itong kwan nya, baka imbes na kwan baka ipitin pa ako (Borra is different, he doesn't think of this thing; I might get into trouble)."

Garcillano advised Asdala against proceeding, saying it was too late anyway and "baka masira ka (you might be ruined)."

Despite this, Asdala was to call Garcillano two days later, this time to say the group of a certain Pax (Mangudadatu's father is Sultan Kudarat Gov. Pax Mangudadatu)  was insisting that he (Asdala) help Barbers in Talitay. " Kako depende sa komisyon (I said it depends on the commission)," he added.

Again, Garcillano replied, "Useless na rin eh, papaano n'yo gagawin yun (It's useless, what can you do)?"

[PCIJ called Governor Mangudadatu's office in Sultan Kudarat yesterday. A male staff said he was in Malaysia and would not give the governor's cellphone number.  PCIJ also got in touch with the governor's daughter, who likewise said she didn't have his number.]

[PCIJ called Congressman Mangudadatu's home last night and was asked to call his office today. When we called today, his staff said he was out of town and refused to give his cellphone number.] 

Later that day, Garcillano and an unidentified man are heard discussing that Barbers, in an annulment case he filed against the proclamation of Sen. Rodolfo Barbers, was claiming he still had 7,000 votes canvassed in South Upi, 6,000 in Talitay and 4,000 in Columbio.

"Hindi yata nakasama (It seems the votes were not included)," Garcillano said.

"Patay kang bata ka. Hindi napasama? Eh papano to? Eh di talagang yari tayo rito (We're dead. They weren't included? So what happens now? We're really in hot water)," the man said.

In a phone call with an unidentified woman on June 16, Garcillano was informed that Asdala was convening the canvassing. The commissioner said he would ask Teng Mangudadatu to call him up and find out their moves,  " para ma-orderan ko si Asdala (so I can issue the order to Asdala)."

TAWI-TAWI

The President called Garcillano twice—on May 26 and June 2—to take up the reported cheating in Tawi-Tawi. In the first conversation, she relayed Biazon's threat to have the ballot boxes in Tawi-tawi opened if he were cheated. " Eh baka raw ako ang madale doon (It might affect me)," she said. Garcillano replied, "Baka nga ho (It might)."

In the second conversation, Arroyo is heard asking the elections commissioner about a teacher from Languyan town supposedly in the opposition's "Witness Protection Program." Garcillano assured her there was none and the opposition was just making an empty threat.

Still, the elections commissioner saw it fit to convey the President's concern over Languyan in his June 5 conversation with a certain Boy, identified by two Comelec sources as the voice of Renault Macarambon, the lawyer with whom he had discussed the problem in Tipo-Tipo. Garcillano told Boy that Generals Arturo Lomibao and Hermoegene Ebdane would be calling and he already advised Mike Abbas about the Languyan teacher.

Michael "Mike" Abbas, the former provincial election supervisor of Saranggani, was Tawi-Tawi's election supervisor.

In Congress's final tally, Arroyo lost to Poe, 33,634 to 49,803. Still, the opposition said cheating in two towns, Simunul and Sitangkai, gave Arroyo 5,624 more votes and reduced their candidate's by 3,796.

COTABATO

In addition to Tawi-Tawi, Arroyo also lost to Poe, who had 29,417 against her 8,510, in Cotabato City.  

In their May 29 conversation, Garcillano assured Arroyo she would not lose by more than 40,000 votes, saying he has already taken up the matter with a certain Atty. Bedol.

Atty. Lintang Bedol chaired the Cotabato City board of canvassers in the May 2004 polls and served as the provincial election supervisor in Sultan Kudarat.  Prior to the elections, he was Maguindanao's election supervisor.

Four days earlier, on May 25, the canvassing in Cotabato City and seven municipalities from Lanao del Sur was still going on. The conversation between Garcillano and an unidientified man on that day centered on getting the maximum in Cotabato and extra votes in Lanao del Sur.

On May 26, the elections commissioner was on the phone with a "Len," said to be his secretary Ellen Peralta, instructing her to remind someone to bring the "SOV 15 to 18 sheets" from Cotabato.

Meanwhile, Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos, on the petition of the opposition mayoral candidate Estrellita Juliano, had ordered the transfer of the city's canvassing to Manila. 

It would turn out that the votes in Cotabato seemed to be of great interest not only to the President but also to Barbers. On May 29, the former senator called Garcillano to ask if it was true that there had been a Comelec resolution ordering the transfer of the canvassing to Manila.  At the time, Garcillano was still unaware of the directive from Abalos. But a subsequent check with Bedol showed a resolution had indeed been issued and Garcillano had not been asked to sign the resolution. He was placed on "official business."

Garcillano is heard telling a man named "Teng" on May 30 to delay the transfer of the Cotabato votes to Manila. "Sabihin mo dyan kung ma-delay niya, i-delay na (Tell them to delay the transfer if they can)," he said.

That same day, Garcillano called Noli, who Comelec sources identified as Manuel Barcelona, the commissioner in charge of the ARMM.  Noli quoted a certain Joey, believed to Arroyo's political adviser Joey Rufino, as saying the transfer of the canvassing had upset administration mayoral candidate Muslimin Sema. He said he had suggested to Joey to ask the President to call Abalos and have the resolution recalled. Noli also said he signed the resolution only because " akala ko order sa taas (I thought it was an order from the top)."

"Pero si presidente, kahapon pa, ayaw niya (But the President didn't want that)," Garcillano said.

On June 2, the elections commissioner got a call from "Mike," said to be First Gentleman Mike Arroyo, urging him to help Barbers.  Garcillano's response: "Pero mahihirapan na tayo, medyo nabuko tayo sa Lanao del Sur at hindi na makakahabol dito sa Cotabato (It will be difficult because we were found out in Lanao del Sur and we can no longer catch up in Cotabato)."

Party List Fraud?

Posted by Luz Rimban, PCIJ

 

THE Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao became a source of votes not just for president, but also for some party-list groups.

Hints that party-list votes were being manipulated appeared in the conversation between Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano and a certain Ruben on June 7, 2004, and the conversation between Garcillano and an unidentified man on June 14:

Conversation between Gary and an unidentified man on 14 07:45 hotel June '04

Gary: Hello.

Man: Padre. Kelan mag-ano yung sa party-list?

Gary: Ina-ano ko pa, wala pa kahit isa after the 23 na mapoproclaim. Ang mauna siguro tong     ALIF (?).  Pero gusto ko masabay-sabay. Kung may tatlo, apat, sabay-sabay na yan.

Man: Oo dapat ganun.

Gary: Pero pipilitin ko Padre.

As it turned out, ALIF (Ang Laban ng Indiginong Filipino), a first-time party-list group, garnered the most number of votes in ARMM based on the Comelec's Party List Canvass Report No. 20 at 176,034 votes, almost enough to guarantee it a seat in Congress. And from just four provinces.

What is ALIF and what's wrong with it? In a petition filed more than a year ago on May 26, 2004, the party-list group Partido ng Manggawa had already asked the Commisison on Elections to disqualify ALIF, among other party-list organizations.

The PM petition says:

 "The party-list ALIF must be disqualified for failure to comply with the seventh guideline of the Supreme Court (# 7: Not only the candidate party or organization must represent marginalized and underrepresented sectors; so also must its nominees). Its nominee, Acmad Tomawis, is a big businessman engaged in overseas contracts, particularly trucking services in Iraq; he is likewise the brother of Ambassador Jerry Tomawis who currently holds a post in a country in the Middle East. The nominee, ALIF, cannot be considered as marginalized and underrepresented."

Jerry Tomawis does not appear in the current roster of Ambassadors although he was once an assemblyman. The party-list nominee, Acmad Tomawis, though, was himself a former government official, having been executive director of the Office of Muslim Affairs. Acmad Tomawis now sits as a member of the House of Representative.

Another petition filed by the party-list group Citizens' Battle Against Corruption, on the other hand, pointed out discrepancies in the Certificates of Canvass (COCs) and Statement of Votes (SOV) in Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur and Tawi-tawi that the group said cast doubt on the votes these party-list groups garnered.

• In Lanao del Sur, the total number of votes for cast for the top 20 party-list groups was 100.3% of the total number of registered voters. In other words, there were more party-list voters than there were registered voters. 
• In Maguindanao, the total votes cast for party-list was placed at 283,012 out of a total of 334,331 registered voters, equvalent to a high turn out of 84.65%
•  In Tawi-tawi, the total number of votes for party-list was 76,334 out of 120,402 registered voters, or a turn out of 63.4%

Even before the May 2004 elections, survey groups had been predicting a low party-list turn out because Filipinos were still unfamiliar and unaware of the party-list system. This is why the CIBAC petition alleges that the 84% turnout in Maguindanao, and the 63% turnout in Tawi-tawi are statistically impossible. The Lanao del Sur turnout of 100.3%, the group says, is downright absurd.

How can the party-list groups in ARMM have such a huge following when in Quezon City, headquarters of some of the party-list groups like Akbayan and Bayan Muna, and focus of intense election propaganda, the turnout of party-list votes, according to the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform (IPER), was only 35%?