Like a jigsaw puzzle, the contents of the alleged cell phone conversations between Elections Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano and various personalities led by President Arroyo fit squarely with events that followed the May 10 polls in 2004. If proven true, they could unmask the cabal of operators who tampered with votes upon orders of Garcillano.
Going by the tape's transcript of the alleged conversations, which supposedly took place from May 17 to June 18, 2004, NEWSBREAK research shows that this jibes with official documents from the Commission on Elections (Comelec), actual events reported in newspapers, as well as previous election stories that this magazine has published.
We spent time with several Comelec officials and employees, who listened to the CD of the alleged conversations and helped NEWSBREAK identify the people whom Garcillano reportedly talked with on the phone and provided the context to the alleged conversations.
One Comelec document obtained by NEWSBREAK proves that it was Garcillano who was running the show in Mindanao even before the elections. A few days before May 10, Garcillano caused the reshuffle of election officers in Mindanao and put his own men in key areas in the region. The reshuffle angered Comelec personnel—given how close it was to election day already. But they could not do anything about it. After all, Garcillano had been appointed vice chair for personnel of the poll body (the chair was Comelec chairperson Benjamin Abalos).
Thus, Abalos was not being honest when he insisted, after the tape scandal broke, that Garcillano had nothing to do with Mindanao during the elections because the latter was Comelec officer in charge (CIC) of another area—Regions 4 and 5.
Awesome Powers
In our story published on May 24, 2004, we cited the concern raised by a poll commissioner about Garcillano's powers as vice chair for personnel. The source, an appointee of ousted President Joseph Estrada, had said then that Garcillano had tried to reassign personnel in the region where the official was already CIC. Normally, the reshuffle is the responsibility of the CIC for that region. The official said he turned down Garcillano.
But in Mindanao where Abalos and Commissioner Manuel Barcelona (both appointees of President Arroyo) were CIC, Garcillano was given a free hand to move personnel. A month before the May elections, for example, the Comelec regional directors in four Mindanao provinces were sighted in Manila. Some of these officials met with Garcillano even during the canvassing, if the intercepted phone calls are to be believed.
Before we went to press, President Arroyo confirmed that it was her voice on the tape, but claimed that she was only monitoring her votes, and not directing "a Comelec official" to cheat. Garcillano issued a flat denial before he went into hiding. He has not been seen by the media; his wife has been serving as his spokesperson.
But this is what we have determined so far:
• On the tape, two men spoke on May 24, 2004, about four remaining provinces that had yet to submit election results. One of them, a certain "chairman," told the other party that the other side had already received 475,000 votes against the 175,000 votes that "we got." A Comelec senatorial canvass report showed that indeed on that date, the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, Sarangani, and Cotabato City had yet to submit their respective certificate of canvasses (COC). The COCs from Lanao del Sur and Lanao del Norte, however, were received in the afternoon of that same day, while Sarangani's was received on May 25.
• On May 25, two men, one of them believed to be Garcillano, purportedly talked about the possibility that then senatorial bet Robert Barbers would lead by 70,000 or 80,000 in one area. Barbers, one of them said, was asking for "developments." Based on the Comelec's May 24 senatorial canvass report, Sen. Rodolfo Biazon—who ran neck and neck with Barbers for the last senatorial slot—was already leading him by 87,685 votes.
• Meanwhile, another caller, said to be First Gentleman Mike Arroyo, also reportedly asked Garcillano whether all provincial results had been accounted for. To this, the man believed to be Garcillano said there were still seven towns in Lanao del Sur that were not included in the province's COC, as well as Cotabato.
• Comelec records indeed show that seven towns and Cotabato City were delayed for canvassing because of electoral protests.
• At around 8 p.m. of that same day, Garcillano reportedly got a call from a certain Danny, who was asking for an update on Cotabato City. In the tape, Garcillano was said to have assured "Danny" that Barbers would win in the remaining municipalities of Lanao del Sur because "Lou Macarambon was there..." Garcillano also told "Danny" that "as of this moment, we need 40 plus for him to overtake. As of this afternoon, 29." Apparently, they were discussing the numbers by the thousands. This conversation jibed with the Comelec's official result on May 25, which showed Biazon leading Barbers by 27,622 votes.
• On May 26, at 11:25 a.m., Garcillano got a call from a woman who sounded like President Arroyo, asking whether the senatorial canvassing could be delayed "until after the voting on the rules tonight." The female caller expressed her concern about the tension between her two allies, presumably Barbers and Biazon, who had accused each other of cheating. Newspaper reports showed that the senatorial canvass was indeed suspended that day. The reason given was that the Comelec was still awaiting the results from Cotabato City and 200 precincts in Lanao del Sur.
• Meanwhile, also on May 26, a man believed to be Garcillano received a call from someone informing the commissioner that a resolution on the proclamation of Grace Padaca as Isabela governor had been released. Garcillano sounded surprised, saying he knew nothing about the resolution. A newspaper report dated May 27 said that Election Commissioners Resurreccion Borra and Mehol Sadain had already signed the May 26 resolution lifting the temporary restraining order on Padaca's proclamation. Succeeding events, however, showed that the resolution was sent to the backburner; Padaca's rival, Gov. Faustino Dy Jr., managed to delay her proclamation.
• On May 29, a man believed to be Garcillano again got a call from one who sounded like Barbers, who wanted to know if the canvassing in Cotabato would be transferred to Manila. Garcillano reportedly told Barbers that he had no idea about this since his point man in the area, "Atty. Lintang Bedol," who sat as chair of Cotabato City board of canvassers, could not be contacted. But a few minutes after the call, Garcillano was able to contact Bedol, who confirmed the order. A May 31 story in the Philippine Star quoted Bedol as saying that the Comelec en banc had ordered the transfer of the canvassing to Manila. The report said the transfer was prompted by a petition of opposition candidate Estrellita "Neng" Juliano.
• On June 1, at 9:43 p.m, a woman who sounded like the President called up again the man believed to be Garcillano, asking why the ballot box from Camarines Norte was found empty in Congress. Garcillano said he would verify this with the officer-in-charge there, Liza Cariño, a Comelec director. This empty ballot box incident was duly reported in the media.
• On June 2, Garcillano reportedly got a call from Mr. Arroyo, who was asking him to help Barbers. Garcillano was said to have claimed that the situation appeared hopeless. "Oo nga, pero mahihirapan na tayo. Medyo nabuko tayo sa Lanao del Sur at hindi na makakahabol dito sa Cotabato (Yes, but it'll be very difficult for us to pull this off. We were already found out in Lanao del Sur, and we can't catch up in Cotabato)." (A man who sounded like Mr. Arroyo would call again an hour later seeking a last-minute delay in the canvassing and proclamation). A check with Biazon's office showed that on that day, Wilfredo Asis had disclosed in an en banc hearing that COCs from Lanao del Sur had been tampered with, apparently to favor Barbers. Showing a photocopy of the COC, Asis said Barbers got 34,702 votes while Biazon received only 1,437 votes in the tampered document. An aide of Biazon who attended the hearing told NEWSBREAK that Abalos fumed at that point, and ordered the immediate proclamation of Biazon. That same day, Biazon was proclaimed the 12th senator, with the Cotabato results fending off Barbers's late charge. Biazon got 13,836 in Cotabato over Barbers's 9,614 votes.
• Also on June 2, a man believed to be Garcillano again got a call from one who sounded like the President, asking him about opposition allegations that the statements of votes (SOV) in Basilan and Lanao del Sur did not match the COC. Newspaper reports showed that on the same day, opposition lawyer Rufus Rodriguez held a press conference showing alleged retail vote shaving against then presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr. in Basilan, Lanao del Sur, and other provinces.
Missing Election Officer
Then on June 3, the First Gentleman reportedly rang up Garcillano to tell him that nobody was watching the canvassing in Basilan. Garcillano explained that a petition to stop the canvassing had been filed in the province. Before the line was cut, Mr. Arroyo reportedly asked Garcillano, "Puwede ikarga mo naman yung 70,000 (Could you load the 70,000)?"
True enough, losing Basilan gubernatorial bet Jim Hataman filed a petition to annul the canvassing. In the congressional canvass later, Arroyo got 78,429 in the province against Poe's 59,892.
On June 5, 2004, Garcillano received a frantic call from a certain Boy, who told him that Rashma could not be located and that she could be in Manila. "Nasa Maynila? Naku delikado.Hindi ba natin makontak? (In Manila? That's dangerous. Can't we get in touch with her?)" Garcillano replied. (Rashma is said to be Hadja Rashma Hali, an election officer in Tipo-Tipo, Basilan).
"Boy" said Rashma could not be contacted on her mobile phone although he had already asked the help of a member of the Intelligence Service of the Armed Forces (ISAFP) in locating her. A Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism blog identified the ISAFP officer to be Col. Aminkadra Salahuddin Undug, who was based in ISAFP's Military Intelligence Group 9 in Zamboanga City.
By that time, Hali was already in Manila and in the custody of Poe's camp. Poe's lawyer, Harriet Demetriou, recalled that opposition lawyer Demaree Raval had asked her sometime in the first week of June if she could meet Hali and take her affidavit.
On June 4, Demetriou said that she accompanied Hali to Makati City prosecutor Edgardo Hirang to give her statement. In her affidavit, Hali disclosed attempts to tamper with the election results in Tipo-Tipo to favor Arroyo.
On June 7, a woman who sounded like the President called up Garcillano to follow up on Hali as she expressed concern that she might be already in opposition hands. Garcillano said he would ask Hali's family to help.
Demetriou said she later learned that some ISAFP and police personnel went to Hali's family in Zamboanga city. The visit, she believes, forced Hali to recant her statement. (Demetriou, along with Rodriguez, were later charged with kidnapping by the police. Demetriou said the charge was dropped after she told the police that she had a video showing that Hali voluntarily gave her statement.)
On June 8, Rodriguez presented Hali to the press, and transcripts of the wiretapped conversation showed this was the topic of conversation between Garcillano and an unidentified man. Garcillano assured the man there was nothing to worry about Hali because her testimony would not affect President Arroyo.
Pressing for Barbers
Also on June 8, at 2:33 p.m., a man believed to be Garcillano again got a call from one who sounded like the First Gentleman, asking him to help Barbers in the latter's petition stopping Biazon's proclamation. Garcillano assured Mr. Arroyo he would do his best because "Siya naman talaga ang atin eh (he's really our man)." An hour after that call, Barbers' petition was still the subject matter of an alleged conversation between Garcillano and an unidentified man. The latter said he had read portions of Barbers' petition, which cited towns whose election results had yet to be canvassed.
A check with the Comelec clerk in office showed that Barbers's petition was received on June 7 at 7:20 p.m. (docketed as SPC case No. 04-258), a day before the alleged conversations took place. The places mentioned by the unidentified man to Garcillano tallied with those cited in Barbers' petition.
Finally, Garcillano was caught on tape in a lengthy conversation with a certain "Tony" (believed to be Antonio Vilar) on June 12 about the President's electoral expenses. The poll official was explaining to Tony media reports quoting him as saying that Ms. Arroyo had spent P330 million in the last poll. In the conversation, the two agreed that Arroyo should file a separate sworn statement of expenditures and contributions to avoid legal problems later.
A check with the Comelec legal department showed that Arroyo and her party coalition party, K-4, filed its statement of expenditures and contributions on June 9. It was filed by Vilar, treasurer of K-4. But on June 18, or six days after the alleged call took place, Vilar, on behalf of the President, filed an updated statement of expenditure and contributions amounting to P152.613 million.
Vilar refused to confirm or deny if he was the Tony whom Garcillano had spoken with. "I have no comment. That's all I can say," he told NEWSBREAK.
Familiar Voices
Comelec employees and officials have told NEWSBREAK that the voices of the other people that Garcillano purportedly spoke with were familiar to them.
A certain "Danny" who called Garcillano on May 25 was identified by Comelec sources as lawyer Francisco Pobe, the provincial election supervisor of Agusan del Sur. "Danny" would call Garcillano again on May 26 asking for results in Cotabato City. Comelec sources say Pobe was acting on behalf of a candidate.
"Macarambon," who was mentioned by Garcillano in the May 25 conversation as the one who was supposed to ensure Barbers's victory in the remaining Lanao del Sur election results, could be Renault "Boy" Macarambon, a Comelec lawyer originally detailed with the executive director for operations but was taken in by Garcillano, according to the same employees. (Macarambon was vice-chair of the Lanao del Sur board of canvassers in the last election.)
"Len," whom Garcillano called on May 26, could be his secretary, Ellen Peralta. In that conversation, he told "Len" to remind someone to bring "SOV 15 to 18 sheets from Cotabato."
Peralta's name surfaced in Garcillano's conversation with an unidentified man believed to be Mr. Arroyo, who promised to deliver P1.5 million to the poll official's office. Garcillano said it would be Peralta who would receive the money.
Long-time Comelec employees also identified the man who addressed Garcillano as "Brod" in a recorded conversation on May 29 as belonging to Reynaldo Pescadera, the election supervisor in Sulu. In that supposed conversation, Pescadera told Garcillano that a certain Sammy was the one involved in the operation in Pangutaran, Sulu. The opposition would later claim that Poe was cheated in that town.
Comelec employees also recognized the voice of lawyer Henry Magbutay, election director of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, as the "Boy" who informed Garcillano that Hali could be hiding in Manila.
In the recorded conversation, the caller suggested that Hali's family be kidnapped, but Garcillano rejected the idea.
Another recognizable voice was that of lawyer Wynne Asdala, now assigned to the Comelec's legal department. He was the election supervisor in Maguindanao during the elections. Asdala reportedly phoned Garcillano on June 6 for updates on the canvass in Cotabato, informing him of a belated attempt to pad Barber's votes in Talitay and Columbio. On June 8, Asdala allegedly called Garcillano again to say that a new group was pestering him to help Barbers in Talitay. Garcillano said the effort was "useless."
Asdala denied to NEWSBREAK that he was the one on the tape. He said he had not heard the tape but had only read its transcript. "Di naman ako si (I'm not) Atty. Estrella," he said. In the published transcript, Asdala was identified as "Atty. Estrella."
Several Comelec employees say that shortly after the elections, Asdala could not be located for almost two weeks amid suspicion that he was wanted by certain parties. He later surfaced in the Comelec, without explaining his absence.
Another Comelec lawyer, Rey Sumalipao, was said to have been mentioned by Garcillano in his June 8 alleged conversation with the President, during which she expressed concerned over an exposé by an official of the National Citizens' Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) in Lanao del Sur.
Garcillano was said to have assured the President that Sumalipao would be able to rebut the Namfrel official's allegations. "We will try to make him say something. I will tell him to talk without letting the people know that I am the one who will address it," Garcillano said. Sumalipao was chair of the provincial board of canvassers in Lanao del Sur in the last election.
Another Comelec official who figured in the tape was Cipriano Ebron (whose surname was misspelled "Libron" in the published transcript), the election officer of Pangutaran, Sulu. Ebron was first referred to by Garcillano in a supposed June 2 conversation where President Arroyo expressed concerned over reports that the SOVs and the COCs in Lanao del Sur and Sulu did not match. "Patataguin ko na lang EO ng Pangutaran para hindi sila makapagtestigo ho (I'll just ask the EO of Pangutaran to go into hiding, so he can't testify)," Garcillano reportedly told the President.
Ebron's name again cropped up in Garcillano's conversation with a certain Ruben on June 7. "Ruben" told Garcillano that Ebron might be presented by the opposition to testify on cheating in Pangutaran, along with Hali.
But Garcillano was unperturbed. "Di nila makukuha si Ebron... wala na... di nila makukuha (They can't get Ebron... he's gone...)" Garcillano also told Ruben that Ebron had been slapped by a soldier, "kaya kahit pakainin mo ng bala 'yun, di na magpapakita (he won't appear, even under the gravest threats)." Two Comelec officials told NEWSBREAK that they indeed received reports that Ebron had been hurt by military personnel, and that one of them even poked a gun at him.
A Mindanao Veteran
Garcillano has established personal friendships with these poll operators during the first time that he was assigned in Comelec.
Garcillano's first Comelec assignment in 1961 was in Sulu. He was a special attorney there before becoming provincial election supervisor in Lanao del Norte and Lanao del Sur in the 1970s. He also became regional director in Western Mindanao and Northern Mindanao before he left the Comelec in 1986, after the Edsa 1 people power revolt.
When he returned to Comelec in 1994, he served as the regional director for Central Mindanao and Northern Mindanao before becoming commissioner.
In between, he also held several assignments in various places in Mindanao, notably in the provinces belonging to the ARMM.
The President trounced Poe in the ARMM provinces by a total of 251,515 votes.
In Basilan, where Wilfredo Daraug and Borromeo Patangan—known Garcillano's protégés—were the provincial election supervisor and chair of the provincial board of canvassers, respectively, in last year's elections, Arroyo got 79,702 votes against Poe's 48,685.
In the Sumalipao-chaired Lanao del Sur board of canvassers, Arroyo got 128,301 votes versus Poe's measly 43,302.
In the Asdala-chaired Maguindanao, Arroyo got 193,938 votes versus Poe's 59,892.
In Tawi-tawi, the election supervisor was another Garcillano protégé, Michael "Mike" Abbas. Poe won in that province, but only slightly (49,803 against Arroyo's 33,634).
In Sulu, while Arroyo won 78,429 against Poe's 60,807 votes, two Comelec officials say the slim margin of victory could be credited to Joselyn de Mesa who refused to participate in the cheating there.
Accounts reaching Comelec, reinforced by the recorded conversations, show that the military there tried to force De Mesa to tamper with the provincial canvass results. In his May 29 conversation with the President, Garcillano faulted a certain Gen. Habacon for reports that some election officers were threatening to expose cheating in Sulu. "Kasi sila Gen. Habacon ba, hindi masyadong marunong pa dyan, medyo sila ang umano nun (It's because Gen. Habacon and his men are new at this, so they must have done something there)." Garcillano must have been referring to Maj. Gen. Gabriel Habacon, commanding general of the Army's 1st Infantry Division, which covers Basilan, Sulu, and the Zamboanga peninsula.
Now, if only all these people could talk—not on tape, but in person.
