Court orders recount of votes for Negros mayor, 9 others

NEGROS OCCIDENTAL, Philippines – A Regional Trial Court in San Carlos City ordered the manual recount of ballots the elected officials of Toboso town, including its mayor.

The recount of the ballots will start next week.

The ballots in question were against Mayor Richard Jaojoco, Vice Mayor Evello Valencia and 8 members of the town council.

Jaojoco said this is because of the election protest filed by their opponents in the May 2013 elections led by mayoralty candidate Maria Luisa Dela Cruz, who was not convinced with the result.

All ballot boxes from the town’s 31 precincts will be recounted, the mayor said.

Court records showed that Jaojoco garnered 9,671 votes while Dela Cruz got 7,813. Jaojoco won by a margin of 1,858 votes.

For vice mayor, Valencia had 10,332 votes while Edilberto Sayad got 6,624 votes. Valencia has the winning margin of 3,708 votes.

The winning candidates  and votes of the Sangguniang Bayan were:
• Lloyd Villaluz – 8,763 
• Josephus Valencia – 8,216 
• Adriano Pañares Jr. – 8,017
• Garme Jose Marie Dela Cruz – 7,827
• Julian Muñez Jr. – 7,723; Mario Muñoz – 7,560
• Jesus Bedonia Jr. – 7,420
• Jesse Rex Bartoleme – 7,341.

Dela Cruz’s election protest was based on the alleged massive fraud, disparity and inconsistency on the voter’s turnout and the actual votes garnered by the winners and the losing candidates.

For his part, lawyer Jessie Suarez, provincial election supervisor, said that the Commission on Elections is set to submit the ballot boxes and the election paraphernalia to the court on June 19.

Suarez said that the election recount will be held inside the courtroom from June 22 to 26. He added that the manual recount will also prove the credibility of the precinct count optical scan machines.

Suarez said that the RTC has already organized a revision committee, which was composed of court personnel, to do the manual recount.

He said that the custody of the ballot boxes from the 31 precincts is with the Municipal Treasurer’s Office, which is being secured by the police and the watchers from both parties.

He said that the election protest filed at the municipal level are under the Regional Trial Court and therefore, they have no jurisdiction on the matter.

He added that election protests in the city and provincial levels are under the jurisdiction of the poll body while the Municipal Trial Courts handles the barangay level.

Toboso election officer Regie Rose Ilustre said that if the recount will yield a different turnout, the matter will be forwarded to the Department of the Interior and Local Government.

“But if the result is the same, the proclamation will be carried over,” she added.

Meanwhile, court records showed that the complainants will have to pay P49,600 for each case for the revision fees to cover for the expenses in the transport, security and return of the ballot boxes and election paraphernalia. – Rappler.com