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Bu-lat-lat (boo-lat-lat) verb: to search, probe, investigate, inquire; to unearth facts Volume IV, Number 16 May 23 - 29, 2004 Quezon City, Philippines |
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Bu-lat-lat (boo-lat-lat) verb: to search, probe, investigate, inquire; to unearth facts Volume IV, Number 16 May 23 - 29, 2004 Quezon City, Philippines |
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When
a farmer volunteered as a poll watcher at the canvassing area in San Mariano,
Isabela (a province north of
Manila), he knew that he would be facing danger as the local election is hotly
contested in the area. He was ready for anything, including being trapped inside
a building as assailants tried to burn the ballots. By dabet castaÑeda
Burning
the ballots On
election day (i.e., May 10), he and his son Danny, 17, acted as poll watchers of
Unido. Two days after (i.e., May
12), he heard rumors that the canvassing center on the second floor of the
municipal hall of San Mariano will be attacked by the military.
“Hindi
ako naniwala nung una pero nung nakatanggap ako ng text mula sa isang
mapagkakatiwalaang kaibigan, kinabahan na ako” (I did not believe it at first but when I got a text message
from a reliable friend, I got nervous), he said. At
around 9 p.m. last May 12, the lights went off and a commotion ensued.
Everyone ran toward the third floor of the hall where the counted ballot
boxes were kept. “Kahit
patayin kami dun, babantayan namin yung mga balota” (Even if we get
killed, we will protect the ballots.), Mang Domeng said.
The
aftermath One
police officer was killed and two others were wounded after an exchange of fire
between the police and the assailants. Mang
Domeng said he has not yet gone home since for fear of his life.
According
to him, Alexander Dy, one of the sons of the late Faustino Sr. who ran for mayor
in San Mariano, warned some members of Anakpawis during the final stretch of the
campaign that they will be killed if he lost. He
ran against Eduardo Go who was openly endorsed by Anakpawis. Go has a 5,365-lead
over Alexander Dy as of press time. Anti-Dy
alliance “The
basis for this year’s unusually disorderly, violent and conflict-ridden
post-election situation in Isabela was laid down primarily by the fact that, for
the first time in four decades, the Dy political dynasty appears headed for
defeat,” said Sr. Mela Alvarez, RGS, head of the Electoral Investigative
Mission (EIM). The
32-member EIM conducted their investigation last May 15 and 16. The mission
interviewed the likes of Bishop Sergio Utleg and the parish priests in the
diocese, Rep. Edwin Dy and leading gubernatorial candidate Grace Padaca.
Gov. Faustino Dy, Jr. and his brother Cesar, incumbent mayor of the town
of Cauayan, refused to be interviewed. Government
chief peace negotiator Silvestre Bello III was interviewed over the phone while
volunteers of the National Citizen’s Movement for Free Elections (NAMFREL),
Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), Bayan Muna, Anakpawis,
and other party-list groups, Bayan and other people’s organizations,
supporters of both the Dys and Padaca as well as military personnel camped
outside the provincial capitol also served as respondents.
Members
of the EIM include the Good Shepherd Sisters, lay volunteers of the poll watch
dog Patriots, the Center for People’s Empowerment and Governance (CenPeg),
members of the United Methodist Church (UMC) and the Iglesia Filipina
Independiente (IFI), multisectoral group Bagong Alyansang Makabayan (BAYAN) and
three other independent international observers. The
investigation team observed that there was growing disaffection among the people
of Isabela over the dynasty that has ruled their downtrodden lives in the last
40 years. The people showed their force by building an anti-Dy alliance, or the
UNIDO that vowed “to free Isabela from the Dy dynasty.”
“The
unification of all the significant anti-Dy forces in the province prior to the
elections served as the powerful counter balance to the built-in advantage of
the incumbent governor with the institutionalized political influence, machinery
and vast resources at his command,” Sr. Alvarez said. EIM
Findings
The
closure of the radio station which was critical of the Dys’ political dynasty
had the “objective effect of depriving the people of Isabela of an independent
source of news and analysis regarding what was happening in their province,”
Alvarez said, adding that the only other station was owned and operated by the
Dys. “It also took away a
powerful tool of the opposition to let their side be heard,” Alvarez added. However,
the EIM said that the burning of the canvassing centers at the municipal halls
of Jones and San Mariano and the subsequent disruption of the canvassing brought
about by the incident “did not result in the failure of elections” as the
contents of the ballot boxes that were burned or snatched had already been
tabulated. The
EIM also said that the charges of the Dy camp that the violence which occurred
after the elections came from the New People’s Army (NPA) “appears
farfetched as there is no evidence to warrant such a conclusion.”
Canvassing
suspended, tension high After
the series of violence reported in the towns of Jones and San Mariano, the
provincial canvass was indefinitely suspended last May 16.
Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBOC) secretary Benito Tumamao, on the
other hand, announced his irrevocable resignation while the PBOC chair Atty. Rey
Doma failed to report for duty, the investigation team found out.
The
EIM said in its report that the tension inside and outside the canvassing areas
remain high despite the exhaustion among the canvassers, poll watchers and
supporters from both camps.
Resumption
of canvassing The
canvassing resumed on May 21, according to Taripnong (Association of Cagayan
Valley Advocates) as it called on the Isabela people to be more vigilant in
safeguarding the election returns and fight for the sanctity of the people’s
votes. Betty
Capili-Antonio, spokesperson of Taripnong, said that the issues raised by the
people of Isabela have thwarted the Dys’ bid in the last election. The
group was referring to the Dys’ plan to convert hundreds of thousands of
agricultural lands in favor of cassava (root crop for import). The project
covers 21 towns including those in nearby provinces of Cagayan, Quirino and
Nueva Vizcaya which is bound to displace thousands of farmers. The
groups also pointed out the plan to implement the Isabela Integrated Coal Mine
Mouth Power Plant which shall result in massive land grabbing.
Antonio
said that one of the issues that spoiled the Dys’ bid for continued power was
the alleged massive recruitment to the Citizens Armed Forces Geographical Unit (CAFGU)
to suppress the growing opposition of the people against the Dy dynasty.
“Inasmuch
as we believe that change in leadership is imminent, we call on Faustino Dy Jr.
to concede peacefully and recognize the will of the people. With this, we are
hopeful that the new leadership will address the issues we have raised and will
bring about genuine change in our condition,” said Antonio.
People’s
victory In
a related development, incumbent governor, three-time congressman and chair of
the National People’s Coalition and Faustino Dy, Jr. is reportedly losing to
neophyte Grace Padaca for the governorship of Isabela. Dy is the eldest son of
the late Dy patriarch Faustino Sr. Results
of the PPCRV unofficial quick count show that Padaca won by 42,728 votes based
on the Certificates of Canvass (COCs) and Election Returns (ERs) from 36 towns
in the province. In a statement, the multisectoral group BAYAN has already declared Padaca the winner. “The people of Isabela put her into power. The toiling masses and the whole mass movement valiantly fought for her victory.” Bulatlat.com Photos courtesy of Taripnong We want to know what you think of this article.
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Burning
the Voters’ Mandate in Isabela
The
investigation also presented evidence that the reported fraud, ballot burnings,
and the closure of radio station Bombo Radyo-Cauayan Station, appeared to be
mainly coming from the Dy camp.
