Former President and incumbent Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo should come out and directly answer the allegations that she was involved in poll fraud instead of accusing the Aquino administration of orchestrating the “revelations" against her, Malacañang said on Thursday.
“The best way for her to respond to this is to answer the charges directly if ever," presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said at a press briefing.
Zaldy Ampatuan, a suspended Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao governor and key suspect in the Maguindanao massacre case, has linked Arroyo to the supposed poll fraud. His claim was corroborated by Lintang Bedol, election supervisor in Maguindanao in 2007.
Lacierda described the Arroyo camp’s accusation that the Aquino administration is orchestrating the revelations as ridiculous. “That’s a ridiculous charge. Remember during the 2007 elections we were not in power. We were not in the position to do anything," he said.
He said Zaldy’s exposés “are based on his own efforts to approach this administration."
“We did not seek him out. We did not solicit him," Lacierda said, adding that it was the Arroyo camp that is politicizing the issue.
He added the Aquino administration does not know where Bedol is right now, although they welcome his decision to surface. In August 2007, Bedol was sentenced to six months imprisonment for violating the Omnibus Election Code after losing important election documents in Maguindanao. He was, however, released after posting a P15,000 bail.
“We don’t even know where he is right now. We are not politicizing — they are politicizing the whole issue — and let’s just wait for the testimony to come out before they issue any premature statement," said Lacierda.
He, however, clarified that Bedol’s statements are subject to assessment and evaluation. “… We have to see first on the basis of probative value, the quality of the testimonies given and the truthfulness."
Zaldy’s statements, he said, were “juicy and controversial," but also need to be validated.
“We’re not here to prosecute someone based on how juicy information is. It has to be validated, assessed and something we have to take seriously more so because the past President is involved here," he said.
In interviews with GMA News in 2007, political operators had already bared supposed evidence of cheating during the polls, said GMA News’ “24 Oras" newscast in an exclusive report on Thursday.
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Facing perjury, libel charges
Meanwhile, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Rene Sarmiento on Thursday said former election supervisor Lintang Bedol may face perjury or libel charges for claiming in a television interview that cheating occurred during the 2007 elections.
Sarmiento, whom Bedol accused of having a hand in the alleged poll fraud, noted the discrepancy in Bedol’s statement regarding election documents used in Maguindanao in 2007.
“Ang sinasabi niya, lost yung documents na ‘yan. Ngayon, sinasabi niya andito sa Comelec. Totoo na may contradiction ‘yung kanyang dalawang statements, ‘yung sinabi niya noon at ngayon. Lumalabas na talagang may serious discrepancies sa kanyang pagsasalita," the poll commissioner said.
That Bedol lost custody of the documents in 2007 was one of the bases for the issuance of an arrest warrant against him by the Comelec en banc on October 22, 2007. Another basis was Bedol’s failure to heed the summons sent by the commission en banc.
According to Sec. 261 of the Omnibus Election Code, an election offense is committed when “any public official, who neglects or fails to properly preserve or account for any ballot box, documents and forms received by him and kept under his custody".
Sec. 226, meanwhile, states that it is considered infidelity in the custody of document if there is a “public officer, who shall remove, destroy or conceal documents or papers officially entrusted to him."
Bedol is also facing violation of Sec. 3 (e) of the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act for allegedly “causing any undue injury to any party, including the Government, or giving any private party any unwarranted benefits, advantage or preference in the discharge of his official administrative or judicial functions through manifest partiality, evident bad faith or gross inexcusable negligence."
Bedol, in August 2007, was sentenced to six months imprisonment but was released after posting bail.
Sarmiento also denied Bedol’s accusation that he was involved in a supposed poll fraud in 2007. “Walang katotohanan ni katiting. Kaya ako po ay nasorpresa na ako ay idinadawit," he said
Bedol claimed that Sarmiento was an “accessory" to the authentication of the alleged fake election returns in the province in the 2007 polls.
Aside from Sarmiento, Bedol also linked then-President Arroyo, then-Comelec chief Benjamin Abalos, and then-Comelec Commissioner Nicodemo Ferrer to the supposed poll fraud.
In parts of a press conference aired on GMA News’ “24 Oras" newscast, Abalos denied that he was involved in cheating in the 2007 elections. — KBK/PE/VS
