Last Wednesday morning, the last day of our three-day seminar-workshop in Cagayan de Oro on “Preparing for the 2010 Election” organized by the Philippine Press Institute and supported by The Coca-Cola Export Corporation, Carol Arguillas and Froilan Gallardo of Mindanews, were nowhere to be seen.
The day before, Carol made a presentation on “Elections and Peace in Mindanao” which disturbed many of us.
We were told that Carol and Froilan had to leave for Marawi City in Lanao del Sur early morning because of the incident of grenade explosion Tuesday afternoon that killed three and injured about 20 persons. We saw Carol and Froilan in the afternoon looking weary, from the interviews they did with the injured and other witnesses to the explosion.
The two shared with us what they have gathered on what obviously was an election-related violence:
A grenade exploded near the Comelec office at the City Hall of Marawi while a registration of voters was going on. Those who were lining up for registration came in two vehicles (Armak). They came from Linamon, Lanao Norte. Most of them were Christians but were given Maranao names to register.
Carol also said there was a 15 year old girl and another 14 year-old among the registrants.
They were reportedly promised P1,000 each and were given advance payment of P100. I imagine that the P1,000 is only for registration and when they would be voting on May 10, 2010, there would be another payment.
So it looks like a case of flying voters.
Mindanews quoted Fr. Chito Suganub, vicar general of St. Mary prelature and member of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) based in Marawi as saying, “this pre-election violence is a sign that 2010 poll will be violent here because (politicians) are serious to gain power.”
The governor of Lanao del Sur is Mamintal Adiong. It is being talked about that the position will be contested in 2010 by former Marawi mayor Omar Ali Solitario, a member of the Moro Islamic Liberation front.
Father Suganub said, “Since politicians can’t cheat in the counting because of the modernized system of voting, there are those who attempted to gather flying voters to defeat opponents. Or there are those who are sowing fear too through violence so that voters cannot vote.”
Carol said she was told twenty of the 56 who were in the queue had already registered when the grenade exploded.
She said that’s only for one day. The registration had been going on for months and there are still 10 days to go. She said it’s possible that that has been going on the past months and weeks. The Comelec apparently tolerates it and the PPCRV, the election watchdog, turns a blind eye to it. Last Tuesday’s flying voter operation would have gone on without a hitch if not for the explosion.
The Oct. 20 Marawi incident merited only a small item in Manila newspapers.What the people does not realize is that, the incident underscores one issue that has been side swept by the public’s enthusiasm for automated election: the integrity of the voters’ list.
Smartmatic’s Miquel Avila, presentation and demonstration coordinator, who was in the Cagayan de Oro seminar with Comelec spokesman James Jimenez, stressed that the election process – the voting, counting and canvassing- is what is going to be automated. What is not automated, he said, is the registration of voters.
Comelec keeps telling us the the list of voters are being purged. But what kind of purging is that when busloads of voters from another town is registering in other towns.
In her seminar presentation, Carol said before Zaldy Ampatuan became governor of the Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao, notoriously known as “reservoir of votes”, there were only 22 towns. Now, there are 33. People are not even sure how many people compose those new towns. Residents there are not even sure who belongs to those towns. Some people call them “ghost towns”.
What is being feared about is that, those ghost towns will have their precincts with their set of “ghost” registered voters. What would happen is that, the candidate who would not be winning in other parts of the country can go to the ARMM and buy the votes they need from the politicians who wield the power there.
Gloria Arroyo did that in 2004. In 2007, everybody was surprised when Miguel Zubiri topped the senatorial special elections in Maguindanao which gave him the 12th slot currently being contested by Koko Pimentel. It can happen again in 2010 election even with the automation.
…And so the Ampatuans and his likes who perfected the art of election cheating in Mindanao with the imprimatur of their fake president will produce a lot of Glorias and Zubiris. A very bleak future for Pinas. Wawawe!
Sino bang presidentiable ang may political will na sabunutan ang mga local officials sa ARRM at sa ibang dako ng Mindanao na ganyan ang estilo?
Nakarehistro na ang mga flying voters courtesy of mga tarantadong local officials, pero karamihan sa mga ‘intelligent’ o ‘mature’ voters daw ay hindi pa nakarehistro dahil takot na mawala ang kanilang pangalan sa listahan, at kung anu-ano pang dahilan.
Dito sa Ellenville, marami ang nagsasabi na puro lang tayo dada at walang aksyon. Ngayon na may pagkakataon para umaksyon… magparehistro at nang makaboto, ayaw naman o nag-aalanganin/takot. Ano ba yan?!
Yan nga ang ipinagtataka ko, kung bakit hindi tumakbo si Noliboy samantalang Ampatuan ang asawa niya. O baka naman merong surprise announcement si Kabayad pag dating ng deadline dahil walang kumakagat sa decoy na si Gibo?
Kaya pala halos lahat ng mga presidentiables eh halos binibisita nila yun region na yun. Gee, mahal manalo kung ganun. Only the annointed of the vultures (those who have looted enough money to support a candidate who can pay off the voters in that region)will win in that region.
Tongue, Noli may not be far from the big picture afterall. He still can sprint to the end. Isn’t his wife from that region?
Kahit nga tiyuhin na si Danding ay hindi kagatin ang decoy na first nephew. Palagay ko e meron niluluto o luto na si Gloria.
Tongue, Ang pagka-alam ko “Pendatun” and wife ni De Castro.
Ellen, tiyak na descendant ni Salipada and wife ni deCastro. Ang pagasa ng pinoy ay kung magkaroon ng “benevolent dictator” . That is good as a snowball’s chance in hell.
May I ask, who is Salipada Pendatun?
Kejotee “dictatorship” in the Philippies in any shape or form wont work. What works is a leader that the elite and the church can manipulate. It they can’t, tough luck! He or she will be ousted!
Salipada Pendatun – first Muslim senator of the Philippines. Graduated from UP law in 1938, one year before Macoy.
He also headed a guerilla unit in the Second World War. There is more here, at the Senate website:
http://www.senate.gov.ph/senators/former_senators/salipada_pendatun.htm
Impressive achievements, wala na yatang Filipino Muslim na gaya ni Salipada Pendatun?
Thanks, atty.
Kaya pala gustong kumandidatong presidente nung kababayan at kadugo ko dahil sa endorsement daw ng mga governors sa Mindanao.
E wala kang back-up sa pinsan mo, paanong mananalo yan kahit sa Zambales, hehehe!
Oopps, residente na pala ng Zambales si Garci. Bah, may karapatang mangarap, may Garci na may tadong gobernadores pa.
Chi,
Mahihirapan din siya sa Zambales palagay ko dahil ang Masinloc ay bayan ng first lady ni Erap.Sa Gapo naman nag-shake hands na si Erap at Dick.
Sa Candelaria ay hindi nakakasiguro si Ebdane, mahahati siguro dahil may inilalabanng manok si Ebdane contra kay mayora.Tapos si Koko Pimentel nanay niya ay from Candelaria at katiket ni Erap.
I think we can kick them out like what china did.
Dahil sa clan war, ang mga warlords sa Mindanao ay kumakapit din sa kung sino ang nasa Malakanyang kapalit ang pangakong suporta sa anumang porma o paraan sa magkabilang panig kaya hindi katakataka na laganap sa ngayon ang hakot ng mga flying voters upang mapanatili ang nakapuwesto o kaya ay suportahan ang tuta ng papanaog na namumuno upang huwag managot sa haharaping mga kaso tungkol sa katiwalian at krimeng kung hindi man tuwirang kinasangkutan ay pinagtakpan ang mgay pananagutan.
Takot din ang mga tao sa kanilang mga lugar sapagkat kapag kinaiinitan at hindi sumunod sa kagustuhan ng sino mang warlord ay hindi magtatagal ang buhay.
Ang kailangan natin ay pambansang lider na may tibay ang dibdib upang linisin ang Mindanao sa mga armadong nanliligalig nang sa gayon ay makamit ang matagal ng minimithing kapayapaan at kaunlaran ng mga karaniwang mamamayan sa Lupang Pangako.
Walang Muslim. Walang Kristiyano. Walang malakas. Walang mahina. Walang mayaman. Walang mahirap. Lahat ay pantay pantay, nagkakaisa bilang mga magkakadugo at magkakapatid na Pilipino!
Ellen, Si Arlene ay isang Sinsuat, descendant ng isa sa 5 royal/political clans ng Maguindanao – Sema, Sinsuat, Mastura, Baraguir and Ampatuan.
Nag-intermarry ang mga Sinsuat sa mga Sema, Sinsuat sa mga Ampatuan, at Sema sa mga Ampatuan. Si Simeon Datumanong ay Ampatuan ang ina. Mag-Google Search kayo ng kombinasyon ng mga apelyidong yan, madami sila, puro Datu, Princess, Bai.
Kung naaalala ninyo nung 90s merong rock singer sa Eat Bulaga na Princess Soraya Sinsuat kasama ng ka-duo na si Ana Garcia (Ana & Soraya a.k.a. Fire). Si Soraya ay anak ni Datu Odin Sinsuat na pangalan na rin ngayon ng isang bayan sa Maguindanao. Ang mga Sinsuat at descendant ng great (daw) First Muslim Senator Datu Sinsuat Balabaran and Bai Derumbai Ibra. Lolo siya ni Arlene.
Wait! “First Filipino Muslim Senator” din?
Search ako sa Google. Ang dami palang “First Filipino Muslim Senator”! Merong nagsabing si Mamintal Tamano, pero sigurado akong hindi siya dahil inabot ko na siya.
Merong nagsasabing si Sinsuat Balabaran, Salipada Pendatun, at Alauya Alonto. Baka nandito ang sagot:
http://jamalashley.wordpress.com/2007/05/03/review-of-two-academic-articles-by-moro-up-professors/
o dito:
http://www.cotabatocity.gov.ph/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=170&Itemid=293&limitstart=5
Halos lahat ng mga warlords, druglords, hoodlums at may impluwensya sa resulta ng election sa mindanao ay alaga ng malakanyang. Kapag hindi nila gusto ang isang provincial commander o opisyal na hindi marunong makikisama, isang tawag lang yan sa malakanyang. Kawawang pulis.
Thanks, Tongue. I stand corrected.
Ellen and Tongue,
De Castro’s wife is a Sinsuat. Since she married a Christian (Noli), she broke a taboo among Magindanao Muslims. So Noli could not mobilize the Sinsuats and their allies because of this, unless he finds another corrupt comelec (remember Bedol?) there who can deliver him sizeable (fake) votes like Zubiri and Chavit.
As to the first Muslim Legislator (Senator?), I believe it was Sultan Alauya Alonto. He was appointed by Gov. General Francis Burton Harrison as part of the “Filipinization” policy that began in 1916. During the Commonwealth era (1935-1945), representatives to the National Assembly (Legislative branch) from Lanao, Sulu and Cotabato were all appointed by President Quezon. There was no senator then, only representatives (11 of 98 of whom are appointed).
I thought the first elected Muslim Senator was Salipada Pendatun, as he rightly claims in the Senate website.
There are two “firsts” here, depending on the nature of the position – appointive or elective.
We need a righteous President not a healing president.
There is nothing to heal but many things to set right.
Gibo is a man of impecable pedigree and educational achievement but that is not enough. His sense of ‘righteousness’ is I’m always right and your always wrong.
GMA views her legacy as a game of chess. Look who is in the Anti Money Laundering Council none other than our Pinocchio frind Toting Bunye. Expect strategic moves in the Tanodbayan. So many times GMA has tried to sneak very friendly nominees for the SC justice.
The most obvious is a run for a Congressional seat. Imelda was hated by most Filipinos but not in her hometown. That is GMAs model. It might not be in this election but highly probably in the next Legislative body after the CONCON.
Noli converted to ISLAM to marry a Sinsuat
Tongue,
Hindi kaya ninuno din ni goyang ang mga Muslim royals na binanggit mo?
Alalahanin mo, lahat ng “great and saintly” ay kamag-anak niya.
Pati nga ‘yung dakilang askal ay ninuno niya, eh.
During the Commonwealth times, there was a unicameral National Assembly. So there were no senators, and like hawaiianguy pointed out, there were appointed legislators, Datu Piang, and Balabaran.
That is why the Senate’s website states that Salipada Pendatun was the first elected Muslim Senator.
romyman has a point, that Noli converted to Islam to marry Arlene – as was indicated in the case filed by 2 men who claim to be Arlene’s son from a first marriage which was dismissed by the fiscal.
If that is true, then Noli’s being a hardcore Black Nazarene devotee is hypocritical. Or he is simply a fake Muslim.
Magno, diba’t pinangalandakan na nga ni Putot na kalahi niya si Lakandula? Si Rajah Sulaiman rin ba? Pati mga Sultan at Datu, hindi pinatawad ng huwad na payasong kutonglupa.
Sa asim ng mukha niya, mas maniniwala ako kung sinabi niyang descendant siya ni Datu Puti.
From koolkat:
Reference to your article in Malaya below, the best way to deal with the anomalous voters’ list in Marawi City is to annul it and conduct a new registration, strictly imposing biometrics and closely monitored by election watchdogs.
The Comelec functionaries at the local level conspire with politicians to register flying voters by selling registration forms to the highest bidder. In MSU alone, the present mayor controls more than 20,000 votes which are spurious. They have accumulated from the last annulment several elections ago which disenfranchised many legitimate residents from registration and voting. This time, the cleansing of voters’ registration lists should not be handled by local Comelec officers, should be properly mapped, and cross-checked with census records. The excuse used to justify padding of registrants in MSU was the transient student population, which can never reach 20,000. This can also be verified with the Office of the University Registrar.
The integrity of the voters’ list is a prerequisite to honest, clean and orderly elections that can reflect the voice of the people and the will of the electorate. Your dogged pursuit in the media of this clear and prevailing danger to our democracy is extremely necessary, particularly in Marawi City and the ARMM.