Tubo Mayor Wilma Gattud and SVD Bishop Leopoldo Jaucian lead the performance of Palook (community dance), an indigenous Tubo tradition during a fiesta celebration. Taken in front of Tubo municipal hall, which also serves as Dap-ay center. (Photo from tingguian.com)

WHILE thousands of barangays all over the country still await the final results of the Oct. 25 polls, eight of 10 barangays in Tubo town in Abra already knew their new set of officials about a month before election day.

This was made possible through the centuries-old dap-ay indigenous practice where community elders in Tubo, called the panglakayen, chose the winners in the race for village chiefs andcouncilors in  barangays Alangtin, Dilong, Kili, Poblacion, Supo, Tiempo, Tubtuba and Tabacda as early as September.

Tubo, the second biggest land area among the 27 towns of Abra, is among the upland towns. It has two indigenous groups–the Maengs and the Belwangs.

“The dap-ay is a form of governance implemented by the father of our forefathers since the 16th century,” Tubo Mayor Wilma Gattud said.

The dap-ay practice in Tubo originated in nearby Mountain Province where its residents came from, according to Abra Provincial Planning and Development Officer Philip Tingonong.

Based on this practice, Gattud said the community elders called for a general assembly before the Oct.25 elections and asked attendees who among them were planning to run as barangay officials.

She said the elders selected only one barangay captain and the required number of councilors, using their own set of qualifications. Among the qualifications are regular attendance in community meetings and community service rendered.

Gattud said only the candidates selected by the elders filed their certificates of candidacy so  they ran unopposed and became sure winners.

She said dap-ay was also used to determine their  candidates in this year’s May presidential elections.

The elders make use of the dap-ay system to ensure peaceful elections because it discourages vote-buying, among other things, Gattud said. Dap-ay yields not only zero campaign-related expenses but also prevents violence, she added.

Abra, located some 400 kilometers north of Manila, is known to be a province whose leaders resort to terrorism and vote-buying to win elections. The province was among the “areas of concerns” declared by the Commission of Elections in the 2010 barangay elections.

Vote-buying in the capital town Bangued is said have gone not less than a million pesos per barangay, or P3,000 to P4,000 per person. Although several checkpoints were installed and police were very visible to ensure the orderly conduct of elections, incidents of shooting and squabbles among politicians in voting precincts were still reported.

Bangued was also placed under COMELEC control because of the reported presence of private armed groups and loose firearms that had fuelled tension among political candidates and their followers.

While incidents of shooting and political harassment through intimidation have been reported in other Abra towns, no similar reports appear in recent police records in Tubo.

In 2001, however, then incumbent Mayor Jose Segundo was killed. He is one of the three mayors killed since then. The other two were Tineg Mayor Clarence Benwaren in 2002 and La Paz Mayor Marc Ysrael Bernos in  2006.

Dap-ay may have been known for its political impact in Tubo because of its role in selecting candidates before the elections. But that  is not its only role.

The Ancestral Domain Sustainable Development Protection Plan 2004-2014 of Tubo also lists policy and development planning as among the dap-ay’s roles and functions.

The 10-year plan defines dap-ay as a “system of governance by the Maeng Tribe, which manage(s) and direct(s) socioeconomic, cultural and spiritual life of the people in an ili (community).”

It further states,  “The collective leadership of the elders is the master of all decisionmaking and the people exercise check and balance during tipon (assembly).”

According to the plan, “every ili has its own dap-ay (autonomous government) operating independently responsible for the management and development of the community concern.”

Abra is inhabited by Ilocanos and Tingguians–or people of the mountains, which Tingonong said is the “generic term Spaniards used in the late 1500s to refer to the different indigenous groups of Abra.”

He said the word is from the Malay term tinggi that means “mountain.” Although Abrenians are predominantly Ilocanos, there are 10 major Tingguian indigenous peoples  in the province.

Abra is one of the six provinces of the Cordillera Administrative Region with a population of 230,953. Of this number, the Provincial Planning and Development Office estimates 34 to 35 percent to be Tingguian.

The province has 303 of the 41,995 barangays nationwide based on the 2006 tally of the National Statistics and Coordination Board tally.

AN election watchdog has this piece of advice for the Commission on Elections: Don’t buy the counting machines used in the May 10 elections.

Ramon Casiple, executive director of the Institute for Political and Electoral Reform (IPER), instead urged the Comelec to just lease the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines amid a suggestion from the Venezuelan firm Smartmatic for the poll body to buy the 80,000 units it had leased for P8 billion for this year’s elections.

Smartmatic president Cesar Flores made the pitch at a press conference upon the arrival of Miss Universe 2008 Dayana Mendoza of Venezuela, its “Ambassador for Transparency.” He had said the Comelec would save billions of pesos if it bought the machines now for future use. The lease contract with Smartmatic gives Comelec the option to buy the technology for P2 billion.

Addressing a post-election summit convened on Friday by the Ateneo School of Government, Casiple acknowledged that the PCOS machines were “still the best” for the elections, but he also identified the shortcomings of those used in the country’s first nationwide automated elections.

For one, the source codes should be in the PCOS machines and not in the compact flash (CF) cards, as was the case in the last elections, said Casiple, who is also a member of the Comelec Advisory Council.

He said the removable CF cards and the last-minute recall and replacement of defective cards had raised fears of possible cheating.

Casiple also reported that more than 1,000 CF cards were “scrambled” because of a technical glitch: Election inspectors had failed to hook the machines to the backup batteries and the scrambling occurred when brownouts hit several voting centers.

The experience highlights the need for voting machines to have built-in batteries, he said.

The IPER executive director also reported that 10,000 PCOS machines failed to transmit election results and caused delays in the counting of the votes.  He cited a report to the Advisory Council last week that only 95 percent of the results have been accounted for.

Casiple also stressed the importance of the PCOS machines to be used in succeeding electons to incorporate biometrics, particularly a fingerprint reader.

Casiple said while the May elections were successful, he said Comelec must address the problem of long queues resulting from, among other reasons, the clustering of precincts.

He also said Congress should reexamine the law on the manner of canvassing, especially by the National Board of Canvassers, given the speed with which the election outcome can now be known, thanks to technology.  “Should it (canvassing) still be done the old way?” he asked.

Election results are counted at the precinct levels. These are then canvassed at the municipal and city or provincial levels.  The votes for senators and party-list groups are then canvassed by Comelec. In presidential elections, Congress, convening as the National Board of Canvassers, canvasses the results for the president and vice president and proclaims the winners.

A review of the Constitution is also in order, especially its provision on the electoral tribunals deciding election-related protests, according to the IPER chief.  Questioning the qualifications of a number of tribunal members, Casiple said the electoral  tribunals are best returned to the judicial system.

With automated elections expected to be a permanent fixture, except perhaps in barangay elections, Casiple called for the modernization of the Comelec by providing it with an IT-oriented building as well as IT training for its personnel at both its national and local offices.

He also urged the professionalization of the poll body, calling the exemption of Comelec from civil service standards “a mistake.”

The standards that should apply to Comelec and its personnel should even be higher, Casiple said.

WHATEVER the final outcome of the tightly contested vice presidential race, Makati Mayor Jejomar Binay has made history by being the first local official to be possibly catapulted to a top national position, just a breath away from the presidency. Unlike another former mayor, Joseph Estrada, Binay bypassed Congress in his quest for a top post.

But Binay’s journey from being a far third at the start of the campaign to becoming the frontrunner in the national canvassing does not surprise fellow mayors and other local executives who say he prepared for it long ago. The Makati mayor made smart use of vast resources and backed these up with an underground operation that included an in-your-face infiltration of a rival political organization.

The latest count by the Senate and House of Representatives acting as National Board of Canvassers shows the Liberal Party’s Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III with a commanding lead of 5.5 million over former president Joseph Estrada of Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino.

But the vice presidential race is still too close to call with the PMP’s Binay posting 14,084,879 votes against the 13,440,127 votes of LP’s Manuel “Mar” Roxas.

Binay leads by 644,752 with some 1.4 million votes still to be canvassed.

This cliffhanger finale to the 2010 elections was unthinkable at the start of the campaign period when Aquino and Roxas topped the Social Weather Stations’ December 2009 survey with 40-percent respondents’ approval. Loren Legarda of the Nacionalista Party was a distant second with 32 percent, and Binay trailed far behind with 10 percent.

But interviews by VERA Files reveal Binay is now merely reaping the rewards of a nationwide network laid out nearly two decades ago when he launched a sister-city program linking Makati with other local government units.

With a P12 billion annual budget, Binay’s Makati could afford to be generous. Since the early 1990s, Makati has forged sisterhood ties with more than 200 municipalities and cities all over the country, advising them on public management, subsidizing computerization training of municipal government employees, providing computer equipment, giving scholarships to poor students from the provinces in Makati City schools, and making available the city’s modern medical facilities.

Binay is also known to be quick in giving at least P50 million in financial assistance to a sister municipality in need, such as in times of calamity.

In his visit to Catbalogan, Samar in March 2009, Binay told reporters that Makati’s sisterhood program had nothing to do with his announced plan to run for president. “Aside from extending assistance and goodwill to other cities and municipalities, the sisterhood is also a good way for LGUs to exchange ideas and best practices on governance,” he said.

Binay had initially aimed for the presidency, refusing invitations from the Liberal party to join its senatorial ticket, saying that his expertise is as an executive and not as a legislator. He only slid down to the vice presidency when Estrada decided to run for president.

The Makati mayor gained valuable exposure to the masses in provincial sorties with the popular Estrada. Sources knowledgeable about the Estrada campaign said Binay underwrote the bulk of the PMP campaign expenses.

Binay solidified his linkages with LGUs with his friendship with 78 other city mayors who compose the League of Cities of the Philippines. This is best shown in Metro Manila’s results where the winning team was Aquino-Binay.

The SWS exit poll showed Binay’s support cutting across party lines. Majority of supporters of NP’s Manuel Villar, Lakas-Kampi-CMD’s Gilbert Teodoro and other presidential candidates had him as vice president.

A source close to one of the Metro Manila mayors said Binay campaigned only for himself with his fellow city mayors, telling them he understood their commitment to another presidential candidate. Estrada showed his displeasure by leaving blank the slot for vice president in his ballot, which was captured on camera on May 10.

Another national organization that Binay cultivated through the years was the Boys Scouts of the Philippines and its allied fraternity, the Alpha Phi Omega.

People made fun of the diminutive mayor looking like an overaged boy in his Boy Scout uniform. But what many didn’t realize was that whenever Binay donned those khaki shorts, he was reaffirming his ties with the 3.5 million members of the organization and establishing a connection with their parents and other family members.

While Binay’s low-key building of national networks would make a good study of effective campaign strategy, his masterstroke was the infiltration of Aquino’s campaign organization.

“There’s no way that Mar (Roxas) could have won with the betrayal from within their campaign organization,” a veteran journalist remarked, sharing his conversation with Aquino’s campaign manager Florencio “Butch” Abad, who was concerned about the activities of the NoyNoy Aquino for President Movement.

NAPM is headed by Ed Roces, son of the late Joaquin “Chino” Roces, founder and publisher of The Manila Times who was responsible for convincing the late Cory Aquino to challenge Ferdinand Marcos for the presidency in 1986.

Abad, the journalist source said, was disturbed that NAPM was campaigning for a Noynoy-Binay ticket from its campaign headquarters in Parc House Building along EDSA, just two floors above the LP office.

It was not only NAPM that was campaigning for a Noy-Bi ticket among Aquino’s supporters. There was the “Yellow Force” reportedly headed  by Mikee Cojuangco-Jaworski, daughter of Aquino’s brother Jose “Peping” Cojuangco, the gay organization “Ang Ladlad,” the People’s Patriotic Movement, and Council for Philippine Affairs.

Friends of COPA leader Pastor “Boy” Saycon speak of a roomful of Noy-Bi materials when visiting his Makati office. COPA includes Peping Cojuangco and his wife, Margarita, and Philippine Star columnist Billy Esposo.

Other Aquino relatives campaigning for Noy-Bi were Jose Maria “Boy” Montelibano and his wife Maria, who headed Radio TV Malacanang when Cory Aquino was president and who was active in Noynoy’s presidential campaign.

Boy Montelibano, in his column in Inquirer online, said Roxas has only himself to blame for his defeat: “It (a Binay victory) has caused allegedly well-bred people to cross lines of decency and engage in gutter behavior in blaming others for what cannot be but a serious error of the core of Mar Roxas’s campaign. For a candidate to lose a lead of over 30 percent in three months without realizing it until the last moment is a classic case of political ineptness. The inept, therefore, have to point the blame on others, a usual human tendency. “

Campaign strategist Malou Tiquia of Publicus, who helped Roxas’ senatorial campaign in 2004, has a similar observation, although put in gentler terms. “Mar was too complacent. This is not the Mar of 2004 who was well-prepared with a good message, an organized ground troop and an air war with a storyline strategy.”

“My reading of him was he was too burned-out after sliding down to number two, and my sense was he was banking on the ‘sacrifice’ to get the home run,” Tiquia added. Roxas, who had been nurturing his own presidential ambition for years, gave way so that Noynoy could become LP standard-bearer, amid public clamor in the weeks after Cory’s death in August.

Tiquia noted that Roxas’s ads did not “embrace” Aquino’s anti-corruption theme and that he was not able to communicate what a vice president can do. “He was more of Mr. Palengke than a partner of Noy,” she said.

Since sliding down to vice president, Roxas had consistently maintained a commanding lead against his then closest rival, Legarda, until polls showed Binay catching up in April.

And then there was Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero who withdrew from the presidential race in November 2009 and then announced he would be supporting Binay for vice president. Escudero and Binay worked together as part of Fernando Poe Jr.’s presidential campaign in 2004. Escudero did not immediately announce who he was supporting for president.

In February, when Aquino’s rating was declining and Villar was catching up with him, Aquino revamped his campaign organization and brought in Escudero, whose team handled media operations. They are believed responsible for the exposés against Villar that paved the way for an Aquino surge.

In April, Escudero, while managing the Aquino campaign’s media operations, came out with TV ads endorsing Binay for vice president. The next surveys after the endorsement had Binay slightly ahead of Roxas.

Tiquia does not credit Binay’s surge to Escudero’s endorsement. “Binay was already on the rise when it came out,” she said. “What it perhaps did was to raise the ante. The timing of the endorsement created that kick to the end game.”

University of the Philippines political science professor Miriam Coronel-Ferrer agreed with Tiquia. “The vaunted appeal of ‘NoyBi’ is a myth. Let’s not give too much credit to Chiz Escudero, Ang Ladlad, and the faction of the Coryistas who supported Binay,” she said.

Ferrer did an analysis of votes based on figures from the electronic data maps prepared by Cybersoft GeoInfomatics for the Philippine Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting. The running tallies were computed from about 90 percent of election returns.

“Aquino and Roxas dominated all other tandems in terms of sheer number of votes,” said Ferrer. “NoyBi is leading in eight or majority of the regions, but contrary to what most people think, Binay benefitted primarily from being Estrada’s running mate and only in a small way from the NoyBi vote configuration.”

Ferrer pointed out that Aquino and Roxas led the race in Western and Central Visayas and the Caraga regions, while Estrada and Binay prevailed in Cagayan Valley, Northern Mindanao, Davao and Soccsksargen.

“Assuming all Erap supporters also voted for Binay, about 8.7 million of his votes can be accounted for. But he has about five million more votes than Erap,” she said.

Ferrer said the gap between the votes of Teodoro and his running mate, Eduardo Manzano, was a possible source for about 2.9 million votes for Binay. “A secondary source is the 1.2 million more people who voted for Villar but not for Loren,” she said

“Binay should thank Gibo’s and Villar’s supporters instead,” Ferrer said.

What makes this year’s intrigue-ridden vice presidential race interesting, however, goes beyond the results of this election. It could be a preview of the 2016 presidential contest.

DAVAO CITY .—The “new” set of Mindanao’s top officials is not exactly new.

Of 25 Mindanao governors, 16 are reelected, two are brothers of the outgoing governors and the rest are “recycled” or those who ran for other posts after completing, usually, a nine-year, three-term service.

Of 33 city mayors, 19 are reelected, five are either sons or daughters of the outgoing and the rest are “recycled.”  (Mindanao’s elected: The city mayors)

Of 57 congressional seats, 18 will be occupied by the same representatives while the rest are relatives of the governor or mayor. (Mindanao’s elected: The representatives)

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THE Commission on Elections is partly to blame for election-related violent incidents because it acted too late to put critical areas, including the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), under its control, said an election watchdog group.

The Consortium on Electoral Reform (CER) said the Comelec ran out of time to implement Resolution 8887, which was issued only on May 8, just two days before the elections.

The Resolution creates special task forces composed of police, military and Comelec officials to contain violence in the whole of ARMM, as well as the provinces of Nueva Ecija and Abra, and several other towns. But because it was issued at the eleventh hour, there was no time to send more military or police forces to these critical areas, especially to the ARMM.

As it turned out, the ARMM had the most number of election-related violent incidents during the 2010 election period, said the CER, which implemented the project Vote Peace.

Vote Peace monitored election-related violence and recorded 130 incidents from January 10 until May 13. Of this number, 22 percent took place in ARMM.

The most volatile area was Lanao del Sur where Vote Peace recorded the most number of victims and incidents, which ranged from shooting clashes to strafings and bombings.

“Had the Comelec declared the province under its control much earlier, the political environment in the area may have been different,” Vote Peace said.

The 2010 elections actually saw election-related violent incidents (ERVIs) drop to their lowest level in 12 years, but there were more deaths, the killings have become more sophisticated, and the operations and targets more precise.

This paradox was part of the “new face of election violence,” Vote Peace said.

Counting from January 10, the start of the election period, up to election day, Vote Peace recorded 119 ERVIs.  Records of the Philippine National Police show 267 incidents for the same period in 1998.  But the number of fatalities was higher this year at 94, compared to only 87 in 1998.

Vote Peace said the drop in violent incidents could be attributed to the “notable peace” in traditional election hotposts—Abra, Nueva Ecija, Masbate, Samar, Lanao del Norte and Sulu—which became the backdrop of previous election violence.

But violence erupted in new election flashpoints like Zamboanga Sibugay, Lanao del Sur, and provinces in Southern Luzon and Western Visayas.

The group singled out the Comelec as the least involved in efforts to reduce ERVIs among the various stakeholders—the Catholic Church, the military, the police and civil society.

But Vote Peace said Comelec’s performance on ERVIs was dismal, mainly because it was too absorbed with the automation process. “Halos walang naging papel ang Comelec (Comelec had almost no involvement),” said Vote Peace project coordinator Patrick Patiño.

Patiño said most of the ERVIs in this election were premeditated attacks with specific targets, such as assassinations, ambushes and shootings.

“Most of the casualties were those directly related to the campaign such as candidates, campaign operators, key supporters, campaign managers and key staff,” Patiño said.  There were fewer accidental victims this year, compared to previous elections.

This gave rise to the initial assessment, Patiño said, that most of those responsible for the violence were hired killers or professional armed groups.  The attacks were mostly perpetrated by  “unidentified motorcycle riding armed men,” not known to locals and unidentifiable, hence the difficulty of bringing the cases to court.

Vote Peace monitoring also showed that weapons used in this election were usually .45 caliber pistols or 9 mm guns, rather than the armalites that caused more casualties.

Vote Peace credited the joint efforts of the Church, the military, the police and civil society for the reduced number of ERVIs. An alliancce among these stakeholders in various provinces resulted in the signing of peace covenants that bound politicians to the cause of peaceful elections.  This efforts were most pronounced in the traditional hotspots where the various stakeholders worked together to prevent a repeat of the violence seen in elections past.

READ THE EARLIER POSTS. CLICK HERE.

WITH the upcoming special elections in 11 areas, a youth group is urging all sectors to continue monitoring the polls, especially in ensuring that all election returns (ERs) be accounted for.

“While these areas are now undergoing or are set to undergo special elections, we call on the public to remain vigilant against election fraud and violence,” Youth Vote Philippines said in a statement.

Other poll watchdog groups and losing candidates have monitored discrepancies in the electronic and printed election results, allowing some to conclude that a “systematic, widespread fraud” took place during the May 10 polls.

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), for example, noted differences in the ERs and electronically transmitted data. But PPCRV said the errors showed no pattern of rigging.

Youth Vote Philippines said problems that occurred in the recently held polls can be prevented with continuous and transparent reporting on areas where failure of elections was declared.

On May 28, the Commission on Elections will conduct special elections in seven areas in Lanao del Sur: Masiu, Sultan Dumalondong, Tubaran, Lumba Bayabao, Marogong, Lumbaca Unayan and Bayang;  two barangays (Upper and Lower Mahaybahay) in Maluso, Basilan; Buenos Aires, in Pagsanjan, Western Samar; and Generosa in Guimbal, Iloilo.

Failure of elections was declared in these areas because of voter disenfranchisement and poll violence.

In Lanao del Sur, for instance, a series of bombing and shooting incidents prevented Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs) from going to the precincts. At least 44,792 voters failed to vote in four areas in the province.

In Basilan, 5,025 residents in 30 precincts did not cast their vote because of unidentified men who were harassing voters in the centers.

Over 400 voters in Iloilo also failed to vote because ballots for their precincts were interchanged with that of Western Samar. The affected areas in Samar had 492 voters.

Comelec has yet to decide on six more petitions to declare failure of elections in six areas in the provinces of Lanao del Sur, Lanao del Norte, and Abra.

In a petition, Abra Rep. Cecilia Seares Luna, who lost her in her reelection bid, is claiming that thousands of voters in the towns of La Paz and Danglas were “disenfranchised.”

On election day, the petition said  “voters” were dragged into polling precincts by armed men and were forced to sign the voters’ list, accept a pre-shaded ballot, and feed it into the machine.

The petition further said such an incident could not have happened without the BEIs consent.

Luna  said  watchers were not allowed to enter the polling places and were harassed and threatened.

In Poona-Piagapo, Lanao Del Norte, a failure of elections is being sought because of poll-related violence incidents.

The affidavit  said that by 7 p.m. on election day, after the closing of the polls and with the machines already sealed, a Comelec officer arrived and ordered members of the military to allow “people” to enter the precincts and vote.

When representatives of a mayoral candidate arrived to question the Comelec, the two men were reportedly mauled. One of them had to be rushed to the hospital.

Meanwhile, shooting incidents marred the conduct of election in Tugaya, Lanao del Sur. As early as 9:30 a.m. on May 10, explosions and gunfire directed at the polling areas lasted for two hours. A woman was killed and two were injured. The precincts in Tugaya Central Elementary School were reportedly ransacked and official ballots were stolen.

In another barangay, Pandiaranao, voting was taking place when a man opened fire at a police officer, who in turn shot back, killing his assailant. The BEIs and the people ran, leaving the ballots and the PCOS machines.

Under the Omnibus Election Code, a failure of election can be declared if polling failed to take place due to violence, terrorism, fraud and any unforseen event beyond the control of any party.

(The authors are students of Bicol University doing their summer internship at VERA Files.)

THE counting of votes may have been quick, but the country’s first-ever automated elections were far from being successful.

This was the sentiment of outgoing Isabela Gov. Grace Padaca, who lost her reelection bid to Faustino Dy III, a scion of the powerful “Dy Dynasty” in the province.

“Define successful? Just because nabilang agad (the counting was quick)?” Padaca said in a press conference on Tuesday at the Ateneo De Manila University.

“I hope we don’t make the Filipino people’s satisfaction shallow,” she added in Filipino.

Automated cheating?

According to Padaca, despite the Commission on Elections’  statement that the May 2010 polls have been successful, massive vote-buying, black propaganda, intimidations, threats and even terrorism were prevalent in Isabela.

Padaca said that aside from the defects in some precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machines, voters were bribed during the recently concluded polls.

The former radio broadcaster said  money was given two weeks before the elections to voters who were lined up along  the national highways. Some people too, were allegedly sent to resorts and bodegas where they were handed P200 to P300  each.

Padaca was defeated in the neck-and-neck battle where she got 49.46 percent of the votes versus Dy, who received 50 percent.

Failed automated polls

Harvey Keh, director of the Ateneo School of Government and founder of political movement Kaya Natin, echoed Padaca’s sentiment.

“We don’t believe in the total success of the elections. We want Comelec to answer these allegations,” he said.

Although the number of election-related violence has gone down to 111 from 2007’s 181, Keh saw little improvement in the figures.

The ADMU professor demanded a dialogue with the Comelec and Smartmatic about the issues hounding the automated elections.

Padaca, who is a member of Kaya Natin, plans to invite losing presidential bets Jamby Madrigal, JC Delos Reyes, Nicanor Perlas and Joseph Estrada to join their case. Madrigal, De los Reyes, Perlas and Estrada have alleged that massive poll fraud was committed in the May 10 elections.

(Read Grace Padaca’s statement here.)

Grace Padaca on the 2010 elections in Isabela

BULUAN, Maguindanao.  – Governor-elect Esmael “Toto” Mangudadatu is requesting the National Statistics Office (NSO) to have a special census for Maguindanao.

“I want a physical count ng mga tao (of people). One by one,” Mangudadatu said.

“Hindi naman ito (This is not about) vengeance,” he told MindaNews late Saturday afternoon in his brother’s residence. “Niloloko nila yung gobyerno eh (they’re fooling government),” he said.

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ON election eve, media tore down the windows of Precinct 175-A of Sitio Alto, Barangay Central Azucarera de Tarlac Elementary School. The two adjacent giant square casements with horizontal rails blocked the perfect view of the precinct count optical scan (PCOS) machine stationed at the voting center. Leading presidential aspirant, Sen. Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III, was to cast his ballot at Precinct 175-A, a small classroom that was the center of everybody’s attention.

As early as May 7, television network technicians trooped to the Central Azucarera de Tarlac Elementary School to set up and prepare for May 10 live telecasts. Victory was up in the air. With a commanding 22-point lead in respectable surveys on election week, Aquino was considered by media the likely 15^th president of the republic.

Aquino arrived a couple of minutes past nine in the morning, mobbed by cameramen and reporters while a long line voters patiently waited outside the voting center where he was headed. By then, Precinct 175-A’s PCOS machine had shut down a second time within a span of less than 30 minutes.

The first shutdown lasted for only five minutes. A young, backpack-carrying technician, who looked like a high school student, tried to troubleshoot and successfully brought the PCOS machine back to life. Only 112 ballots had been fed to the automated counting machine from the time the polls opened at 7 a.m. until it stopped.

Reviving the PCOS after the second shutdown was more difficult. The Board of Election Inspectors decided to just continue with the voting and feed the filled-up ballots when the machine comes back to life.

Informed of the situation at the precinct, Aquino decided to hold his press conference earlier for a more orderly question-and-answer routine by the media mob.

Aquino seemed calm and composed despite the ominous PCOS machine malfunction in his own precinct. He had received reports earlier about similar machine malfunction, delays and long queues of voters in various regions.

Profusely sweating in a loose, Lacoste shirt with white, blue and yellow stripes, Aquino looked drawn and several pounds lighter after the bruising 90-day campaign. He gamely answered every question thrown at him during the presser, including what he ate for breakfast and what he promised his mother, the late president Cory Aquino.

Asked why he decided to vote at 9 a.m. unlike other candidates who went to the polling precincts earlier, the senator quipped, “Feel ko lang talaga bumoto ng 9 (I really feel like voting at 9).”

When queried what he thought of his rivals, Aquino showed that, unlike the average Filipino, he had a long memory and did not hide his dismay: “At certain points in the campaign ay talagang wala hong ginawa lahat ng kalaban natin maliban sa isa lang na pinagtulung-tulungan tayo (All my opponents did nothing else but to gang up on me).” To his recollection, only Bro. Eddie Villanueva and his cousin, former defense secretary Gibo Teodoro, did not join the anti-Aquino mob.

When the press conference was over, the senator, surrounded by his close-in security, was immediately escorted to the voting center. But he decided to wait at the end of the line which by then had more tripled after the 30-minute-or-so presser. His elder sisters, Ballsy Cruz and Pinky Abellada, in-laws, cousins and nephews gave him company.

With the heat of the sun sapping his energy, the leading presidential candidate decided to use the lull wisely. He asked that the one-on-one interview with Probe Profiles’ Cheche Lazaro be moved earlier—while he was waiting for his turn at Precinct 175-A.

In 15 minutes, the leading presidential candidate was back in a pressure-cooker-like classroom, confidently answering questions that delved on his fears about being cheated and his plans for the government, in case he succeeded. The eloquence of his parents was absent during the 38-minute interview, but the spontaneity and clarity of thought were not wanting. Aquino laid out some specific targets and gauges with which he could be judged: One, arresting and throwing corrupt government officials in jail (“Pasensyahan tayo maski sino ka pa kung kailangan palakihin yung Muntinlupa gagawin po natin yan”); two, winning the support of Congress in the effort to push reforms (“Napaka-incompetent ko po kung di ko makukuha ang mayorya”).

The following is a transcript of the interview with Aquino a few minutes before he voted himself as the 15^th president of the Philippines:

Q: Bakit ho kayo luminya?

A: Syempre kailangang kadamay ka; kung naghihirap yung mga kababayan mo, sumama ka sa kanila. Tagapaglingkod ka eh, sila ang pinaglilingkuran.

Q: Bakit importante sa yo yon?

A: Kung meron kang hihinging sakripisyo down the line, mauna ka munang magsakripisyo. At maraming problemang aayusin sa bansa natin. Eh hindi naman pwedeng kayo na ang mag-sacrifice, tayo ay nasa ginhawa. Damay sa lahat dapat.

Q: Itong first automated elections, anong impression nyo? So far, hindi pa kayo nakakaboto.

A: Well yun po yung nangyari dun sa makina dun po sa amin ‘no. Nine o’ clock pa lang yata, 9:30 nag-bog down, supposed to be because of heat. So parang sinasabi ho sa ‘tin dyan, mukha hong kulang yung product testing. Pero sila, sinasabi ko, ide-develop yung prototype, (then it) passes through so many tests, until you’re satisfied na perfected na at pwede na nating i-mass deploy. Pero parang ang ginawa, dineploy tapos dun chineck. Medyo baliktad yung proseso.

Q: May tiwala ho ba kayo na magiging mapayapa itong automated election, magsa-succeed?

A: So far ang problema lang hong inilalapit sa ‘tin, yung tagal ng pagboto sa maraming lugar. At meron tayong mga ibang kababayan, talagang medyo sumusuko na, talagang sa init na rin ng panahon. At parang nawawalan ng pag-asa. Sana hindi significant number yon. Sana bumalik sila mamayang hapon at maisulong ang kanilang pagboto.

Q: Meron ho ba kayong pangamba na baka ma-disenfranchise itong mga botanteng ito?

A: Syempre meron po dahil may nagpadala ho sa atin. Ang nire-report nya, sa ARMM, hindi pa ho natin nave-verify. Dun daw po eh on average parang 20 people per hour ang nakakaboto. So tinataya ho nila na baka 20 percent lang ang makaboto during the 11-hour period.

Q: Relieved ho ba kayo na tapos na ang kampanya?

A: Kahapon ho nagkaroon ako ng pagkakataon umidlip nang sandali. Naging malalim, mga isang oras at kalahati. At nung pagkagising, dahil may Misa kami kahapon, medyo may konting disorientation. Sabi ko, “Aba. Talagang deep sleep pala ‘tong nangyari dito.”

Q: First time in 90 days?

A: Kung tutuusin ho, from my mom’s last month.

Q: Hindi pa ho kayo nagpapahinga.

A: Kasi August 1, diretso September 9 eh nagdeklara tayo. May decision-making from August 5 to September 9.

Q:  How would you assess the campaign?

A:  Well, pinakita ho sa min na talagang marami hong problema yung organisasyon namin, rushed. We did not have as long a preparation time as our opponents. But at the end of the day, we really felt God’s guidance in the strength that He nurtured us, we were able to overcome a lot of obstacles on our way.

Q: Maliban doon sa pangangampanya niyo, na sabi ninyo you were guided, yung black propaganda, ano’ng view niyo tungkol doon?

A: Siyempre medyo nakakadismaya. Pwede naman natin iangat yung debate sa mga plataporma, stratehiya, para pag-ayos ng mga suliranin natin. Tapos pupunta ho na talagang yung expected na ho yun, yung sa text brigade ano. Tapos gumamit na rin ng internet. Nakakabigla lang ho, yung mga pinatulan ng ibang mga media organizations, yung mga walang attribution na mga istorya. At hindi ho natin makita na sumubok man lang sa tinatawag na secondary sources. Parang, masyado ho bang i-expect yun na i-check ninyo maski papaano ng konti lang. Tingnan niyo yung psychiatric report ‘no, pwede hong kinausap si Father Caluag ‘no, hindi ho kinausap si Father Caluag hanggang parang gumawa na nga ho ng storya. Pagkatapos po nun, may nagpo-point out nga ho na kung dito parang ako po yung biktima, tapos ako pa po yung pinagpapaliwanag. So, medyo baliktad na baliktad nga po yung mundo.

Q:  Didn’t you expect it? Dahil sa kandidato kayo sa pagkapresidente.

A: Well, you expected it from your opponents pero you have to ask, where is the professionalism here?

Q:  Media ang tinutukoy ninyo?

A:  Well, media specifically ‘no. Kasi pagkatapos po nun, binigyan na naman ng airtime, basically pinalitan ng kapiraso yung detalye, the guy talking says this is unverified, and still pursued, they’re still giving them airtime. Kumbaga, the mistake was compounded. Yung first, baka sabihin na natin human error. Yung second parang ang hirap isipin na wala namang malice yun.

Q:  Nabahala ho ba kayo sa personal na atake?

A:  Well, hindi naman sa nabahala ano dahil, tingnan po niyo yung una nga ho, hindi man lang, yung bumabanat sa atin hindi man lang sumuri ng enough na para malaman yung kanilang kino-quote eh hindi po niya training yung psychiatry or psychology. Tapos medyo nung binago po, naghanap sila, pari na ang pagkaintindi ko po talagang institusyon po sa pinanggalingan kong eskwela, pero 89 years old na ho.

Q:  Father Bulatao.

A: Para siguro, alam po nating hindi masyado ho masyadong maganda ang health. Siguro sinusubukan lang na hindi makasagot si Father Bulatao o hindi na niya maalala, ano. Yung pangatlo naman pong kino-quote, sinigurado nilang hindi makaka-refute dahil patay. So, buti na lang nandun po yung asawa, yung asawa po ay dentista, doktor rin, alam po niya na naitago yung mga records at kaya niyang ire-print.

Q  Pero marami hong nagsasabi na ang media has been kind to you.

A  Siguro, well, ahm.

Q: Parang hindi kayo binabanatan ng media, yon ang sinasabi nila.

A: Meron hong walang ginawa kundi banatan ako, di pa ho ako tumatakbo eh. I’ll give you a case in point. Sa broadsheet, budget deliberations noon, sinabayan ng joint session, and I’m one of the two most religious in attending the whole budget deliberations from beginning to end. So yung unang araw ng joint session, I had to make a choice–prepare for the joint session, which is the first ever, or go to the budget deliberations. And I chose the morning session to prepare for the joint session. Nagkataon ako pa ang unang nagtanong eh. Of course, yung broadsheet na yon hindi ho binanggit na every other day, meaning alll the other days, I was present, from morning till morning. Sinenter sa…

Q: One time.

A: Half day na wala po ako dahil may joint session. And then of course hindi na rin minention yung joint session. Then pag tinitingnan ko po yung coverage dun sa embedded nung aking isang kalaban, para bang propagandist ang dating sa akin. I don’t think I have ever had a press conference that was not adversarial. Which is, I accept, ‘no. I accept that my ideas, my suggestions should be put to the test.

Q: Yes.

A: But one has to wonder, sabi ko, bakit kaya dun sa kabila eh para bang they share his vision. And unfortunately, as far as I’m concerned, that candidate does not have a vision of anything.

Q: With your 20-point lead at saka lumalaki nang lumalaki in the last few weeks, do you smell victory?

A: If we had solved the problems of “Hello, Garci,” we had corrected all of the loopholes, we had punished people who are guilty if they committed the crime, then at this point in time I should say, “Okay na.” But the truth of the matter is, we never solved, we never had closure for that. You had a second version in terms of Lintang Bedol in the ARMM in the 2007 elections wherein I was a victim. So until the process is finished, until Congress actually proclaims the winner, then we can’t say it’s over.

Q: You can’t say it’s over?

A: And in fact I should even make extra efforts to get all of our supporters to be even more energetic toward this last phase of the elections.

Q: Do you have any fears about cheating?

A: Of course. We have never had (closure). Look at the reasonable request that we had with Comelec. Amongst them, yung si Vetaliano Acosta was disqualified twice. Why should it be such a difficult thing to remove him from the ballot? They never did. And they give you some lame excuse na, baka walang tigil na magre-reprint daw sila. When they reverse themselves by qualifying him and then taking their time to disqualify him, it’s a fact that whereas before we were in three columns, now one of the candidates has a column all to himself, and that is such an undue advantage. And there are studies that say, when you’re No. 1 on the list, you become No. 2, you do tend to lose some votes.

Q: Sinasadya, yun po ba ang ano nyo?

A: There are quarters that are saying premeditated yon.

Q: Okay, kung kayo po ang manalo, paano nyo ho ipagsasama-sama lahat nung magkakatunggali ngayon?

A: Palagay ko naman kung maganda yung mungkahi natin at tama, mahihirapan po yung mga iba na mag-a-advance na ng kanilang political agenda na kontrahin. Syempre umpisa ho dun sa motherhood statement pero pati yung implementation, you will want to try to get everybody on board. We will try to expound on our ideas through the media and get them some really vital partners, di ba, not only, eto yung end point eh. How do we get to the end point? Why did we choose it this way? And hopefully, we will be judged on whether or not we delivered on what we committed to.

Q: Hindi ho ba mahirap, I mean, sa laki ng problema na hinaharap natin, hindi ho ba kayo natatakot o wala ho ba kayong pangamba?

A: Nung umpisa po. Pero ang dami ho nating pinag-aralan. For instance, ito nasa classroom po tayo ngayon. May kulang na 40,000 classrooms sa buong Pilipinas. Ang cost used to be, I used to consider it staggering, 20 billion pesos just for the shell of a classroom. Now it turns out, and there are studies being done, one of them says 280 billion pesos was lost due to corruption last year. So not even 10 percent of what was lost is already enough to do away with that perpetual problem of lack of classrooms. Then we do away with shifting, we give them adequate time to study in an eight-hour day. Hopefully we can embark on the 12-year basic ed program soon, really sooner rather than later. Then government in effect has the necessary resources, in so long as we are able to, first curtail, eventually eliminate for all intents and purposes yung corruption. Then government becomes empowered to empower its people.

Q: Kung dayain ho kayo, at kung, sabi mo nga, baka mangyari yon, anong gagawin nyo?

A: Ito’y ilalapit natin sa taumbayan. Kung sakaling ganon ang mangyari, ano ba ang nangyari, ilalantad natin. Paniwala ho namin ni Mar Roxas, kami po ay mukha lang nitong simulain at kilusan na ‘to. Taumbayan na po ang magsasabi kung saan tayo tutungo. Pero kinikilala po ng Saligang Batas, sovereignty resides with the people. Kung ano man ang poder na pinapahiram kung kanino man, yung operative po dun yung “pinapahiram” eh. Taumbayan ho dapat nasusunod sa ating bansa?

Q: Totoo ho bang magma-mount kayo ng People Power?

A: Hindi pa ho natin alam. Sa ngayon wala pa naman tayong nakikita para doon ang dapat nating patunguhan. At over the past few days, and I want to emphasize the past few days, yung mga quarters na kinakabahan natin na baka sila mag-mount eh mukha hong hindi na ho gagawin yung pandaraya. Meron na rin hong tinuturo na mukhang tuloy pa rin. Makikita po natin sa resulta mamaya eh. Ang sa akin lang mas nagko-concentrate ako, dito ho, yung sa presinto namin, napakarami pong nakapila dyan mula kaninang umaga.

Q: Alas sais pa lang nandyan na sila.

A: At kahapon ho sa Taguig, balita ko sandaang libo hong mga supporter natin ang tumungo na sa kanilang mga presinto para siguradong makaboto. Yung dedication ng mga tao para mai-ayos yung bansa natin, dun po ako nakatutok ngayon.

Q: Kung manalo ho kayo, anong gagawin nyo ho first 100 days?

A: No. 1, itayo muna ang gabinete. Yun po ang mag-i-implement ng ating mga polisiya, proyekto, programa. Marami po tayong pinangako. For instance yung setting up the mechanism for closure of some of the issues that have been left pending. Ang gusto ko rin, as much as possible, maumpisahan, yung parang i-implement yung reforms in the judicial side. That needs kasi convening of a body called JELAC, which is the Judicial Executive Legislative Advisory and Consultative Council. The problem is, the legislature has to organize itself before they can send people to this body. Pero yung pagkaintindi ko po, there is a study, I believe, done by the Supreme Court, funded by the World Bank, that already has so many points of improvement in our judicial system. End point being, there has to be certainty of punishment to a crime number one, and number two, yung justice in our country is always delayed. Minimum of six years to adjudicate any case. There are suggestions as to how to expedite the process. The current Chief Justice, Chief Justice Puno, with his Justice On Wheels program, has managed to demonstrate that with will, in their case judicial will, they managed to resolve two to three thousand cases in two or three days, in two specific areas. So it can be done, it will be done. It can be done, it shall be done, and it will be done.

Q: Okay, yung closure na sinasabi nyo, pano nyo gagawin yon?

A: Yung technical terms I’ll have to defer to the lawyers. Pero the concept is, there is somebody, or a commission that’s set up to precisely detail the steps eh–gathering of evidence, gathering the complaints, parang training the special prosecutors. Ang focus, on all of these issues apart from the one that handles all the criminal complaints, all the civil complaints.

Q: So first 100 days you’ll do this?

A: Set up that commission, task them to do it in, hopefully, six months, and then implement.

Q: Yung Gabinete nyo ho meron na ho kayong napili?

A: Meron hong tatlo so far. Yung two of them wala pang specific na assignment. Si Dinky Soliman will go back to DSWD if we are fortunate. I really believe Dinky performed exceedingly well. Nakaka-impress ho nung mga may bagyong parating, early on in this current administration. Yung relief goods were in place, evacuation centers were ready. And the people’s suffering was minimized. Kasi lately ho, yung with Ondoy and Pepeng, I’m sure you witnessed, nagtatayo ng tarpaulin ang MMDA na humihingi ng relief goods. Sabi ko, “Okay ‘to, gobyerno na ang humihingi ng relief na ipamumudmod.” You also have the situation na yung ating calamity fund, ginamit before the onset of the first calamity. Once the elections are over I think I will have time to start talking to the people in my mind, and with various portfolios.

Q: Can you name others po?

A: Since they haven’t accepted, and in certain instances I have not given them the specifics, I think it will be unfair.

Q: Ano pong ma-e-expect namin sa isang Aquino administration?

A: Babalikan ko muna. Central theme namin, “Kung walang corrupt, walang mahirap.” Yung corruption, nawala na yung kapangyarihan ng gobyerno, mabigyan ng pagkakataon ang ating sambayanan. So hinabol po namin. Good governance, kung wala si corruption, magkakaroon ng kapangyarihan uli ang estado na matulungan ang mamamayan abutin ang kanilang maabot. Balik ho tayo. Education na ang number two sa platform namin. Yung education may direct impact sa trabahong makukuha. Ano ho ba ang growth areas natin? BPOs, call centers amongst them. One out of 10 lang ang aplikanteng natatanggap. Tourism, very big potential earner. Unfortunately, ang necessary skill, communication is sorely lacking. Marami hong ibang problema sa tourism ‘no. Pero the education opportunities should redound to getting our people to better jobs than just minimum wage occupations.

Q: Kung sakali po kayo ay palarin at maging presidente namin, kayo po ang magiging pangalawang Aquino na presidente. Paano ho maiiba sa pagkapangulo ni dating Presidente Cory?

A: Ang nanay ko po eh, number one, hindi naman po sya ang pulitiko sa pamilya namin. No. 2, wala hong transition na nangyari. Bigla na lang parang umalis sina Ginoong Marcos, et al, bahala na kayo dyan. Hindi ko makalimutan ang imahe nung panahon na yon. Yung mga volunteers po ng nanay kong tumulong sa kanya sa kampanya, nung sinama sa Malacanang, for the next six months volunteer pa rin, to the extent na magdala ng sariling office supplies. But in that period of time, with the addition of about another four months, they managed to turn around the GDP of the country from negative to positive. Kami naman ho magbe-benefit from their lessons. I’ve been in the legislature and in government since 1998. I will not claim that I know all knowledge at this point in time. Meron ho talagang kilusan ang kasalukuyang nakaupo para hindi maibigay sa atin ang datos na tama.

Q: So paano ho kayo magta-transition?

A: Ayusin rin po natin ang eleksyon. Yung redistricting bill po ng Malolos, inaangkin po ng Malolos meron po silang 250,000–254,000 as of 2007. Yung NSO nagpakita na ang kanilang estimate, yun nga ang sinasang-ayunan. Nung kinonduct yung actual, biglang naging 226. What is funny is, that entire first district, Malolos lang ang overestimated. Every other component was underestimated. So I asked, using the same people, same systems, same office, same subset of a population. Bakit ho kabilaang direksyon ang error? And then I was never given a satisfactory answer? ARMM has increased its population. Its rate of population growth is about six something percent, six point something percent. National average is two point something. And so I did ask in the last budget, bakit times three? Three hundred percent ang difference? And they gave me a facetious answer, they don’t believe in artificial contraception.

Q: So ang sinasabi mo, compared kay Tita Cory, mas handa kayo?

A: Mas may kakayahan kaming maging handa, mas mahaba na po ang experience. Ang problema lang nga ho pareho yung pagmamanahan namin, na talagang, ano ba, di na lang ako nakaluhod eh. Baka nakaplakda na po ang bansa natin na ibinigay sa amin para i-ayos. Alam mo yung budget last year, yung budget deficit last year was pegged roughly at about three hundred billion pesos. This year when we started out, three hundred billion na naman ang pino-project. Yung latest, I understand, is over 400. Now, marami po tayong naririnig na report. Amongst them, inamin ni Secretary Gonzalez, acting Secretary Gonzalez ng DND, na pinapasukan nilang contracts. And parang mali na naman yung pag gastos eh. Merong commuter airline in Canada, bibilhin nila yung aircraft. Yung aircraft gagamitin for maritime surveillance. Yung total duration or yung flying endurance ng eroplano is four hours. Kung iko-compare po nyo sa, yung P3 Orion, which is used for maritime surveillance, has a 16-hour flying time. We have a very extensive coastline. Kung papunta pa lang don eh kailangang bumalik na, anong point? Pero pwede ‘to, in their last two months or so, kahit na ginamit, kung anu-anong kontrata ang pinapasukan hindi lang po ng DND, pati ng iba pong ahensya. In a period na may deficit, na yung scheme and downpayment pa lang ho balloons the deficit. Yun po ang mamanahin namin.

Q: Pa’no nyo susugpuin ang korupsyon? Lahat ng nakausap namin gusto kayo dahil sa tema nyong tatanggalin ang korupsyon. Pero ang tagal tagal na nyan. Pa’no nyo tatanggalin yan?

A: Nung ini-imagine namin, meron akong isang abogado, sinasabi ko, yan ang magiging papel mo. Every time na lumabas ka sa publiko meron kang aarestuhin.

Q: Kailangan may sampol.

A: First, I should lead by example, moral suasion on everybody else. Kung ako hindi ko ginagawa, kayo wag ninyong gawin. Then the most important thing, that’s why judicial reform is so important, talagang, yung prosecutorial service natin, ang basis ng performance evaluation is your ability to shift papers from your office to another office. Why do I say that? Happy ho sila na 18 percent conviction rate. The study that the World Bank commissioned was, I think, 2000. We’re now a decade late and it’s still there.

Q: Still 18 percent.

A: 18. One-eight. So 82 percent of the time, we lose our cases. But it’s the fiscal who decides eh. Sufficient evidence? Strong ba ang quality ng evidence? Pero pasok sila nang pasok ng kaso, tapos talo nang talo. Ano ‘tong meritocracy? Pag may sinampa kang kaso, talo ka, paliwanag mo. Bakit mo inaksaya ang oras, pera ng taumbayan. Now, yung, a real case, ‘no. When was the fertilizer scam, 2004. When did COA come out with its findings, 2005? When did they start investigating Mr. Bolante, 2008? So four years. In addition to the six years adjudication, assuming they filed cases against him. But they didn’t. So 723, 28 million po ang pinag-uusapan dyan, the guy is practically going scot-free. Pag natapos yung buong proseso, he is no longer a spring chicken. He might be 70 by that time.

Q: Hindi na sya pwedeng ikulong.

A: So that becomes an incentive to people to follow his path. Yung first ano, arestuhin muna natin. Tax evaders, smugglers, tiwali ng pamahalaan. Yung law, basically, chief executive, trabaho mo, implement. Importante, mailagay mo nga yung tama. Department of Justice, head of the prosecutorial service. Itong Ombudsman, dapat mas active. Ang difference sa mungkahi namin, puro stick po yan eh, puro pamalo. Asan naman yung incentive, yung carrot. So we call it the carrot and stick approach. Yung carrot, the president of the republic, before the new salary increase, na parang dinagdagan ng mga 20 percent, from 50,000 a month to 60 something thousand. Pero sabihin natin sa 50 para mas madali, pagkatagal-tagal, 50,000 sweldo ng pinakamataas na swelduhan na elective official–presidente. Presides over a 1.5 trillion budget. 50,000 gross does not even support education of (her) children in one of the best schools. How much more so for those in the bottom of the totempole. So ang sinasabi namin, every time na umiikot ho kami, gusto natin kasinggaling ng pinakamagaling na negosyante sa buong mundo. Kailangan kasimbait ni Mother Teresa. Tapos susuwelduhan natin, butong pakwan na lang yata, pira-piraso pa. Tapos gusto natin matino. Eh ginagawa natin ang imposible ho. Pero hindi naman natin pwedeng imungkahi yung increase hanggang hindi maipakita ang gobyernong humusay. At pag humusay na ho, pwede na nating sabayan siguro ang Singapore na kung saan 80 percent po ng private sector counterpart ang sinusweldo ng public sector. Habang gumaganda po yung ekonomiya may increase rin po kaagad–para naa-attract po natin yung pinakamahusay. Pero pag humiwalay ng landas pumunta dun sa landas ng baluktot eh pasensiyahan tayo maski sino ka pa kung kailangan palakihin yung Muntinlupa gagawin po natin yan.

Q: Magpapatalsik ho ba kayo ng mga officials ngayon na nakikita niyong hindi makatarungan, na corrupt, nangungurakot?

A: Siyempre po. Pag iniwan po natin na gagawin pa rin po yung parehong ginagawa di habang sumusulong kami baka hinahatak kami paatras ng dalawang hakbang.

Q: Hindi ho ba mas madaling sabihin yun kaysa gawin?

A: May proseso ho tayong dapat sundan at tagubilin po ng aking ama yung karapatan ng bawat isa  kailangan proteksiyonan, kailangang pangalagaan, kailangang panindigan, lalo na dun sa kalaban. Yun lang ho talaga ang batayan at sukatan ng isang tunay na demokrasya. Pero ang sinasabi na nga ho natin dito bakit natin kailangan tiisin yung…

Q: Marami hong nagsasabi na while you’re out of the system, okay ka lang. Of course you’ve been in the system pero maari makain ka ng buhay pagdating mo sa sistema mismo na ikaw yung sentro ng kapangyarihan, ikaw yung pinupuntahan ng tao, sa yo sumisipsip yung mga tao, mangyayari kaya yun?
A: Meron naman po akong training na rin nung presidente nanay ko. Alam na rin natin suriin naman ang tamang impormasyon at yun na nga ho nagpapa-cute, sumisipsip kaya nga mungkahi ko ho, kung papayag yung mga kapitbahay ko manirahan pa rin ho ako sa tirahan namin sa Times, para ho at the end of the day eh medyo mapaalala ko sa sarili ko, “Hoy, ordinaryo kang mamamayan”. May hangganan po ‘no. Nakatutok po tayo ng anim na taon po kabuuan niya at sa anim na taon kailangan napakaganda na po nung pangyayari, yung pagbabago na magkakaroon ng sariling momentum kung sino man ang papalit maobligang ipagpatuloy. Ito na po ang huling kampanya kong papasukan kung ako’y palarin, huli na rin po itong paglilingkod ko sa taong bayan in an elective capacity, ayaw ko naman po sa end point pa eh nagkasira-sira pa.

Q: Sakali po na hindi manalo ang kapartner niyong si Mar, handa ho ba kayong makipag-ugnayan dun sa kung sinuman ang manalong bise-presidente?

A: Dapat ho. Pero siyempre ako po at the end of the day ang may responsibilidad kung saan patutungo ‘tong gobyernong kung tayo po ang palarin. Kung hindi ho kami magkasang-ayon dun sa pananaw, magkakaroon rin po ng limitasyon sa aming pag-uugnayan,

Q: Speaking of personal plans. Maraming nagsasabi sinong first lady niyo?

A: Ngayon yung mga kapatid ko ho functions as…papakiusapan natin.

Q: You’re known as a very shy person, hindi ho kayo ma-pulitika, nasanay na ho ba kayo na itong tatlong buwan na dinaanan niyo, nagbago na ho ba ang–

A: Sa trabaho ala naman hong problema eh kaya kong makihalubilo maski kanino pa. Siyempre kung minsan gusto rin nating mamili, kung puro bola lang ang mapapala ko dun sa kausap ko eh meron naman hangganan lahat sa mundo hinahanap ko po yung may saysay. Tapos may times naman po kung pupwede hong gusto niyo ng quality time mag-isa.

Q: Anong gagawin niyo dun sa mga, si GMA daw ho nag-midnight appointees, marami ho siyang in-appoint, marami ho siyang mga tinanggal at itong bagong chief justice baka ho siya ang mag-appoint.

A: Irereview po natin na lahat itong so-called midnight appointments. There is a provision in the Constitution if I’m not mistaken, it’s Article 7 Sec. 14. Ang sinasabi po dun for period of 90 days you can review all these appointments and I understand when they say all of these appointments.
Q: You can?

A: Except yung sa Chief Justice that becomes a question but there are other modes to handle that.

Q: What about your girlfriend? Are you going to get married?

A: Hindi pa ho namin napapag-usapan yan. She’s been campaigning, I’d been campaigning and this is something, running for this election was never part of the plans.

Q: If you become president, ah, you said, you won’t live in the Malacanang? Ba’t niyo ayaw tumira doon?

A: Malacanang itself, the palace itself, I think the people in my memory have chosen to reside there have been affected negatively. I don’t know if it’s the building, but President Marcos and Mrs. Arroyo both lived there and I don’t want to emulate anything that they did.

Q: So, you’ll live in Arlegui?
A: I’m really trying to stay in Times but I will have to ask my neighbors if they can tolerate my presence there. Yung, it’s so important na at the end of the day, I am a normal citizen.

Q: Bakit importante sa inyo yun, I mean, hindi ho ba nababago yung estado ninyo kung kayo ay maging presidente?
A: ‘Pag hinihiwalay ho niyo ang estado niyo sa estado ng mamamayan, baka magpapahirap na rin po na asikasuhin dahil di niyo naiintindihan yung problema nila.

Q: Ganun ba?
A: Yung simple as traffic po no? O di, kino-convince ko ang aking mga security advisers na i- map out na ninyo habang may traffic, tayong chief executive, kung tayo ay manalo, tayo ang may kasalanan, o di kung nagsa-suffer sila, tiis rin tayo. So, sa kanila ho, iba yung moving target, versus stationary target. Sabi ko, “Magtatalaga naman tayo ng traffic czar na time-based. Ayusin mo ito.”

Q: Ganun ha?

A: Hindi puwedeng eventually, puro pangako. Ngayon, aminin po natin, sa Pilipinas, medyo unique din naman. Meron hong mga kotseng, 1950′s kotse na siya, tumatakbo pa rin sa kalsada na tin. Yung life span ng vehicle dito, may nakasabay akong 30-40 year-old car na po, hindi na po bumubulusok ng usok.

Q: Pero umaandar naman?
A: Maganda ang takbo. Pero babalik tayo dito, may bagong sasakyan taon-taon, may lumang sasakyang di nag-re-retire, para yung infrastructure natin, may pangangailangan.

Q: Parang tao yun di ba?
A: Sana nga.

Q: Okay, anong babaguhin niyo sa sususnod na eleksyon?
A: well, dito nga ho sa, actually, marami ho, ang hirap i-detail lahat. Pero, yung ating Comelec commissioners, gusto natin sana, somebody who can focus na constitutional office, One term then, wala na hong considerations other than, really fulfilling what’s in the law.

Q: Senator, sa palagay niyo ho ba, ang gaganda ng ideas niyo, but can you really implement that considering na napaka-walang disiplina tayo, sanay na tayo sa kalakaran noon–
A: Ma’am, yung kampanya po natin, di naman natin masasabi na sobrang maganda yung organization namin, na naibuo lahat ng volunteers namin, kumbaga, na-i-traning, namulat lahat. Ang daming pagkakataon, yung bawat sektor ng ating, yung bawat isang volunteer, talagang binubuhos nila yung makakaya nila kahit hindi iniuutos sa kanila, maski di pinakiusap sa kanila. Nagkusa ho sila. So, hindi lang po dito, paano ba natin i-ha-harness yun. Kunyari ho, may hihingin tayong batas sa kongreso, itong mga taong mulat at gising, pupuntahan yung kinatawan nila at uutusan, “Ito ang gusto naming posisyon mo diyan.”

Q: Kung manalo ho kayo, at di niyo makuha ang mayorya, sa Senado at sa Kongreso–

A: Mahirap pong di makuha ang mayorya, napaka-incompetent ko po kung di ko makukuha ang mayoraya–

Q: Sa Senado po?
A: Sa Senado, at the end of the day po, yung hindi natin nakikitang kasama natin, yung mga beterano, babalik tayo du’n sa kung maganda yung mungkahi natin, mahihirapan po siguro yung iba na kontrahin.

Q: Babaliktarin ko lang yung question, given a two-digit lead in the surveys, do you still think you can lose?

A: Palagay namin, ang layo-layo ng lamang ng aking ina, nung dumating na po doon iba na na-proklama na ng Batasang Pambansa, afterwards, nung umalis yung principal, binabawi nila.

Q: Nininerbyos ka ba?
A: Nerbyos hindi ho, pero parang may sense na rin ng contentment. From nowhere, to frontrunnner, that we have achieved this level, I have to emphasize yung we ano, hindi lang naman ako ang nag-iisip nito.

Q: Did you think na mananalo ka noong nag-umpisa ka?
A: May magandang laban. Pero katulad ng survey na namin, sabi ko kung number 3, okay na siguro yun. Late na late tayo, number two. Yung survey namin, number 1. (Lazaro: 50%?) Mga ganun. Pero, pag-ikot namin ngayon, tanghaling tapat, ganito yung weather, yung tao nasa highway, may reflecting effect, more heat. maghintay kayo ng tatlong oras, apat na oras, limang oras. may paulit-ulit na yung tao nandun pa rin, alas-nuwebe ng gabi. Di naman kayo nagkakakitaan, wala namang ilaw yung trak na ginagamit namin s aloob. Yung dedication ho, nandoon. Yung motivation.

Q: Anong epekto nu’n sa inyong personal na damdamin?
A: Ala ho tayong kainan, on time man lang. Let alone, whether quantity or quality. Normally, I have a doughnut siguro at the start of the day then you have dinner at about 10:30 or so, pero you sleep, 3-4 hours. They were supposed to give me Sunday as a break, they took four of the last Sundays for this or that. So no sleep, no food. You’re exposed to all the elements, be it sun or rain. But the people are there. I don’t know if that’s adrenaline rush but you don’t feel the hunger, you feel energized. You seemed to draw more reserve from somewhere. Sana from God.

Q: Sana from God. Are you devout like your Mom?

A: Not as devout as my Mom.

Q: But you look to Him for guidance?

A: Lalo na po ‘pag matters affecting our people and country. I am very confident that He will provide what we don’t have. Yung reverse nu’n, kayo na nagsabi, hindi ka pa kinakasal, sabi ko, “Boss, kailan ba yung ako du’n?”  Kasi that signifies peace time to me. I get a partner, tapos na yung masalimuot na buhay.

Q: Just in case we have another EDSA 1 scenario, do you think, yung ganitong cycle, sasabihin nila, tapos na yan, dapat wala ng People Power…

A: Hindi naman dapat mangyari na magkaka-People Power pa eh. Lalo na kung yung kasalukuyang administrasyon, niluklok ng People Power, ay kinilala yung kanyang mga pangako. Pero, lalo na after elections, pinakamatindi na mula 2005, naging masyadong concentrated. Personal na interes at yung grupong sumusuporta para maitaguyod ang personal na interes. Balik tayo, nawala na sa equation ang taong-bayan.

Q: Anong gagawin mo kay Mrs. Arroyo?

A: Hindi po ako ang gagawa kay Mrs. Arroyo. Korte po ang gagawa kay Mrs. Arroyo. Pero, babalikan ko po na, yung fertilizer scam ba, P728 million dapat pinakinabangan ng ating magsasaka, walang nangyari, dapat ba forget na lang yun. Yun bang ZTE na siya mismo nagsabi, ang daming bagay, P5 million lang dapat, walang sovereign guarantee, naging government to government, naging P40 biliion, paano nangyari yun? Pabayaan na lang nating di matakpan yung loophole? Yung extrajudicial, okay na rin ba na wala na lang, “Sorry ha, victim kayo. Ewan namin sinong paparusahan.” Hindi ho puwede yun. Ang dami ho, balik ho tayo, may mga closure na ba? Yung sa eleksyon po natin, dapat ang taong bayan ang trabaho na lang sa eleksyon, pumunta ka sa presinto, bumoto, hindi yung nangangamba, nag-iisip, “Kailangan ba mag-People Power, dapat peaceful transition, napakadali. Yung Garci, six years tayo binigyan ng oras para ayusin, wala tayong ginawa. So, papabayaan bang next time, 2016, ganito na naman, tense na naman nag buong bayan. Ang daming ganun, pipilitin naming baguhin. Sana kasama kayo.

(Publication of the transcript was made possible by VERA Files trustee Booma Cruz, who is the general manager of Probe Productions.)