By LITO RULONA
Correspondent
OVER 200 ballot boxes used here in last year’s elections would be sent to the House of Representatives so that votes cast during the congressional race in the city’s 1st District last year could be recounted.
The contents of 224 ballot boxes would be manually recounted based on the protest of losing congressional candidate Lourdes Darimbang.
Based on the official count, Darimbang had 51,208 votes or 47.3 percent of votes in the 1st District. She lost to reelectionist Rep. Rolando Uy who received 57,094 or 52.7 percent of the votes.
The Darimbangs said at least five ballot boxes were discovered to be unsealed or had defective seals when these were inspected over the weekend on orders of the House of Representatives’ Electoral Tribunal (HRET).
Darimbang’s husband Mandangan expressed dismay over the discovery.
He speculated: “Akong tan-aw ani gihilabtan gyud kini nga mga balota. Makita masulod gyud ang akong kamot kay wala og ang uban found with defective seals.”
The ballot boxes at city hall were inspected by a group composed of representatives from the Commission on Elections, National Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), City Treasurer’s Office, and the groups of Darimbang and Uy.
Ruel Evangelista Basilan, assistant election officer in the city, said it was the first time for the Comelec to check the ballot since the Random Manual Audit Testing (RMA) last November.
“Maayo man ilang pagsulod sa bodega sa city hall gawas sa ginagmay nga reklamo,” said Basilan.
He said the barangay election inspectors were the ones who sealed the ballot boxes after last year’s elections.
Rep. Uy’s lawyer Alan Geñoso said the weekend inspection was part of the normal proceedings in connection with the protest of Darimbang.
“Kadtong nakita namo nga unsealed amo lang gi-document og insakto. Those found with defective seals were being recorded. Gina-tighten lang ang uban. Halos tanan naman kumpleto,” Geñoso said.
He said the ballot boxes were secured, and would be sent to Metro Manila for the manual counting.
The boxes in question contain ballots cast in election precincts in barangays Carmen, Bayabas and Patag.
This Jan. 6, the secretary of the Tribunal, Girlie Salarda, ordered the warring parties to be present during the checking and resealing of the ballot boxes.
Salarda also ordered city treasurer Glenn Bañez and Comelec officials, among others, to take immediate steps to safeguard the integrity of the ballot boxes and their contents, list of voters with voting records, books of voters, and other documents and paraphernalia.
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