By ARTHA KIRA PAREDES
BANGUED, Abra.—Two candidates for mayor of Tineg town in Abra, who have been disqualified by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) central office, are “still candidates” according to the provincial election supervisor.
“Pwede pa rin, meron pa ring Supreme Court na pwedeng puntahan (They can still run, they can run to the Supreme Court),” Lawyer Vanessa Roncal told reporters in an impromptu press conference at the Comelec office here early today.
Running for mayor in Tineg are incumbent Edwin Crisologo, Lenin Benwaren and Cromwell Luna.
Tineg is a far-flung town, part of which can be reached only by foot. But it is a wealthy one, receiving an annual internal revenue allotment (IRA) of P68 million, the highest among all Abra municipalities.
A resolution dated May 4 signed by the COMELEC en banc stated that Luna’s Certificate of Candidacy “is hereby cancelled.”
“His name is hereby ordered stricken off the list of candidates for the position Mayor, Municipality of Tineg, Abra for the May 10, 2010 elections,” the resolution said.
In a May 4 press conference at Camp Juan Villamor here, Roncal announced that the COMELEC second division had also disqualified Benwaren because he had a criminal case with a pending arrest warrant at the Abra Regional Trial Court Branch 2. Benwaren has already submitted his motion for reconsideration.
But Roncal said the names of Luna and Benwaren have been in the ballots since February and the PCOS machine are already programmed to read votes for both candidates.
The decisions to disqualify both candidates came “very, very, very late,” Roncal said.
Luna’s lawyer Joselito Benedito doubts the authenticity of the resolution. “How can it be final when I have not received any such document,” he asked.
He said that once received, they still had 10 days to “appeal or make a motion for reconsideration,” so that “as far as the Republic of the Philippines is concerned, Cromwell is still a candidate.”
Although disappointed that his petition to disqualify both of his opponents has not yielded favorable results, Crisologo said the “fight goes on.”
He also reported that one of his supporters, a certain Barangay Tanod named Lito Felix from Barangay Cogon in Tineg, was shot last night.
Police say that Felix, who was wounded on the arm and side, is now in an ambulance on its way to the Abra Provincial Hospital in Bangued.
In other news, newly installed Abra police director Senior Superintendent Joseph Adnol said candidates in Bangued were out to do what is called panagbukwal or the act of getting residents to vote for candidates at the last minute by offering a higher amount for their votes.
The Ilocano word means to dig up and transplant. In some cases, several reports claim that candidates’ representatives knock on doors and put guns to voters’ heads so that they would be forced to receive the money.
Adnol said they have been receiving reports of the presence of armed men in Sagap, Maoay and Calot but have found none when police were sent to verify.
He said there were probably no armed men but followers and supporters tasked to do panagbukwal.
“Pagpunta ng pulis doon, hindi na sila tutuloy (When the police get there, it will deter them from coming),” he said.
Adnol said the Philippine National Police assigned 1,300 police in the province for the elections.