Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye reiterated Malacanang’s appeal after Congress keeps its work as a National Board of Canvassers, despite adjourning sine die.
"Congress adjourns but the National Board of Canvassers works on. This happened without much controversy in 1992 and 1998 and has been accepted as normal practice. What we need is a fair and speedy canvass, and a timely proclamation. The people’s patience is wearing thin," he said.
Bunye’s statement came a day after he bared the alleged strategy by the opposition to derail the proclamation of the winning president and vice president by delaying the canvassing of votes through the continued filibustering and other dilatory tactics by some Congress members belonging to the opposition.
Also part of the opposition’s strategy to derail the proclamation on June 30 are the holding of a series of mass protest actions and the continued accusations of electoral irregularities, including wide-scale cheating, vote-buying, and tampering of election returns allegedly committed by the administration.
Official canvassing at Congress continued at a snail pace with some opposition lawmakers intermittently interrupting the proceedings with their stubborn filibustering and other dilatory tactics, raising the ire of some civic and religious leaders over excessive partisan politicking, Bunye said.
He also seconded Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Rosales’ appeal to Congress leaders, notably among those belonging to the opposition, to speed up the canvassing of votes, stressing that excessive partisan politics is blocking the smooth proceedings.
"The Filipino people are already fed up with the slow canvassing. The Filipino people would want to know the result of the canvassing," he said in his regular news briefing.
The National Board of Canvassers has practically 19 days left to finish its canvassing of votes for president and vice president and subsequently, proclaim the duly-elected leaders by noontime of June 30.
Cebu victory
Malacañang downplayed yesterday the opposition’s allegations of massive electoral fraud in Cebu province where President Arroyo claimed a "landslide victory" over her closest rival, opposition presidential candidate Fernando Poe Jr., in the May 10 elections.
Presidential spokesman Ignacio Bunye scored the Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) after it presented to the media 10 former election officers who reportedly are willing to testify before the 22-man joint congressional canvassing committee on the alleged electoral frauds in Cebu.
"The opposition’s play is all media hype," he said, as he lashed out at the KNP for presenting to the media 10 election officers who covered their faces with towels like "they were testifying against terrorists." The KNP did not allow the election officers to speak to the media or even identify themselves.
"This means the opposition is either unsure of its own witnesses trying to put one over the public or is engaged in plain foolishness."
The KNP is planning to bring the 10 election officers before the 22-man joint congressional canvassing committee to compel its members to open the election returns of Cebu City and province and compare these with the Certificates of Canvass (COCs) and statements of votes now with Congress.
Some Congress leaders have been objecting to the opening of election returns per province, municipality or city because, they said, the 22-man joint congressional committee is only authorized to canvass votes for president and vice president.
Opposition lawmakers insisted that election returns should be recalled in the event that there are glaring suspicions about the authenticity of the CoCs. They argued that the May 10 elections were marred by flagrant tampering of election returns by province, city or municipal levels. (Ferdie J. Maglalang)
Fraud witnesses
Administration solons yesterday belittled the opposition’s presentation of supposed poll fraud witnesses from Cebu as they challenged anew the opposition to formalize their complaint before the Presidential Electoral Tribunal, instead of using media to spread their claims of cheating.
The solons, led by Nationalist People’s Coalition Rep. Joseph Felix Durano of Cebu and Lakas-CMD Rep. Augusto Syjuco of Iloilo, also advised the opposition that it would be improper for them to use Independence Day to stage protest rallies on the basis of their unproven claims.
Durano, chairman of the House committee on public order and security, said the opposition should stop using his province as reference point for its poll fraud disinformation drive because he could attest to the clean and honest conduct of the polls in Cebu.
The Cebuanos overwhelmingly voted for President Arroyo because of her track record and substantive platform, he said.
The President, he said, had 1,185,690 votes in Cebu island against Fernando Poe Jr.’s 181,690 votes, for a margin of 1,004,000 votes.
Authentic CoCs
"If we follow strictly the rules on procedures and jurisprudence on canvassing and we stick just to the tabulation, the preliminary canvass should be over in a week," administration members of the Joint Committee canvassing votes cast for president and vice president of the country said yesterday.
Lakas-CMD Reps. Prospero Nograles of Davao City and Mauricio Domogan of Baguio City, panel member and alternate member, respectively, said "events of the past days have shown that the opposition’s statements that they are only committed to find the truth were pure rhetoric."
They called on the opposition to accept the Certificates of Canvass now in Congress, saying these are "authentic and duly executed."
Vice mayors
The Vice Mayors League of the Philippines (VMLP) yesterday called on the 22-man congressional canvass committee to speed up their count for president and vice president, saying that the Filipino people wanted them to finally come out with the results so that the country can move forward.
"We are calling on the congressional canvass committee to expedite their canvass so that the Filipino people can finally know the outcome of the May 10 elections. They really want to know who will lead them in the next six years," VMLP president Las Piñas City Vice Mayor Luis Bustamante said in a press briefing at the Century Park Hotel in Manila where the group is now holding their 2nd quarter National Executive Board Meeting.
"At the rate things are going, ang naapektuhan na ay ang taumbayan (it is the citizens affected)," Bustamante said.
Dagupan City Vice Mayor Alvin Fernandez, VMLP vice president for finance, said that certain elements in the opposition should quit making statements alleging of massive fraud perpetrated by the administration.
