ANGELES CITY, Pampanga, Philippines — Mayor Edgardo “EdPam” Pamintuan will continue to serve his term as mayor of this city after the former mayor who contested his electoral victory in May, 2010, withdrew his protest the other day.

Former Mayor Fracisco “Blueboy” Nepomuceno said yesterday that while he still believes he won the elections, he has decided to spare the city from further division and yielded the post to Pamintuan, who was proclaimed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Nepomuceno said that after his protest led to the Comelec’s decision to hold a manual recount that began last Monday, the exercise only showed that there were indiscrepancies between the manual count and the election returns (ERs).

“We have come to the end of a long journey. Today, I am officially withdrawing my poll protest against incumbent mayor Pamintuan before the Commission on Elections,” said Nepomuceno.

In a press conference yesterday morning, Pamintuan said that cheating had been exposed by the manual recount ordered by the Comelec 2nd Division in Manila but claimed the tampering of the ballots was done after his proclamation as mayor during the time the ballot boxes were stored.

“These documents indicate that there indeed was, as I have said, cheating that occurred in Angeles City in the May 10, 2010 elections, but the cheating was against me,” Pamintuan said.

Pamintuan presented to media sworn statements by three individuals who served as members of the civil security unit (CSU) that guarded the ballot boxes while being stored at the Office of the Treasurer from May 11 to June 30, 2011, during the incumbency of Nepomuceno.

“I sincerely would have wanted to congratulate Mr. Blueboy Nepomuceno for withdrawing his electoral protest against me. I really would have called him a gentleman, and even gave him a hug for sparing our city from divisiveness that is usually the offspring of electoral protests,” he said.