THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday issued a show cause order (SCO) against senatorial candidate Las Piñas City Rep. Camille Villar for her alleged vote buying activities during an event in Imus, Cavite.
In an interview, Comelec Executive Director Teopisto Elnas said the alleged vote buying act happened during an event in Barangay Buhay na Tubig in Imus.
“She (Villar) was there at the stage during the activity and it happened within the campaign period. Someone is giving away money and there are those receiving money on that event,” Elnas said.
The poll body gave Villar three days to respond to the SCO and explain why she should not be disqualified and charged for committing an election offense.
In a statement, Villar said the event referred to happened last February 9, “which was way before the campaign period.”
She also denied “any allegation or insinuation of vote buying or commission of any election offense.”
“I am confident that the Comelec will clear my name of these wrongful allegations upon hearing my side on the matter,” she said.
Elnas said Villar is the first national candidate who was issued a show cause order by the Committee on Kontra Bigay which is tasked to police vote buying activities.
Under the Omnibus Election Code, vote buying are acts wherein a person gives, offers, or promises money or anything of value, directly or indirectly, to induce anyone or the public in general to vote for or against any candidate.
Elnas said the SCO was prompted by an anonymous complaint filed against Villar using a Facebook post as main evidence.
Asked what will happen if Villar does not respond to the order, Elnas said they will still push through with the investigation.
Data from the Comelec – Committee on Kontra Bigay showed that there are a total of 120 candidates that have been issued SCOs for alleged acts of vote buying or abuse of state resources.
Meanwhile, the Comelec also issued a show cause order against Cabiao, Nueva Ecija mayor and vice mayoral bet Ramil Rivera over his statements that are allegedly discriminatory and deemed as labeling.
In a four-page SCO, the Comelec Task Force SAFE asked Rivera to explain within three days his statements and why he should not be cited for election offense and face possible disqualification in the May 12 polls.
Task Force SAFE Director Sonia Wee-Lozada cited Rivera’s statement where he insinuated that their political rivals are uncircumcised.
“Ang aking kuya na ito, galit sa supot ito. Baka may supot diyan, delikado kayo dito. Kaya sabi ko dito sa kuya ko na ito, itong mga kalaban natin walang ginawa kundi manira. Sigurado mga supot pa yan, pakituli mo lang (My big brother is against people who are uncircumcised. That’s why if any of you are uncircumcised, you should be careful. I told him, maybe our rivals have been doing a smear job against us. I am sure that they are uncircumcised and he should just circumcise them),” Rivera supposedly said.
The SAFE task force also cited several other instances where Rivera also allegedly said that their political rivals are engaged in killing activities.
“Nag-iingat po kami eh baka mamaya, pagbabarilin kami doon. May dala kaming bullet-proof na sasakyan para mailigtas namin ang aming mga sarili, dahil alam naman po natin kung anong klase ang ating mga kalaban (We are being careful because we might be fired at. We are using a bullet-proof vehicle to protect ourselves because we know what kind of people we are up against),” Rivera also reportedly said.
The Comelec said his statement on circumcision can be considered as “gender-based harassment” as it can be considered a sexual jokes and/or use of sexual names.
His allegations on killings, on the other hand, can be deemed as “labeling” as he supposedly engaged in “associating, naming, and accusing individuals, groups and/or organizations as communist or subversive group sympathizers or terrorists, or belonging to a criminal group/syndicate without evidence.”
Wee-Lozada said Rivera’s statements constitute possible violations of the poll body’s Anti-Discrimination and Fair Campaigning Guidelines.
Violations of the said guidelines are considered as an election offense case.
In a related development, the poll body yesterday ordered Pasig City congressional candidate Christian Sia, who gained national infamy for his controversial “single mom joke” made during one of his campaign sorties, to answer the disqualification case filed against him.
In a two-page summon, the Comelec Second Division directed Sia to respond to the disqualification complaint filed by the Task Force SAFE of the poll body.
“The case shall be deemed submitted for resolution upon the receipt of respondent’s answer cum memorandum or upon the expiration of the period to do so, whichever comes first,” said the poll body.
The Comelec Task Force SAFE last week filed a petition for the disqualification of Sia from participating in the May 12 polls.
Sia came under fire due to a viral video where he was seen and heard giving a public statement saying single mothers can have sex with him once a year when they feel lonely as long as they are still menstruating.
Meanwhile, the Makabayan Coalition yesterday filed an election offense case against National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict (NTF-Elcac) Executive Director Ernesto Torres, Jr. due to his alleged red-tagging and defamatory statements against its candidates in the this year’s polls.
In a complaint – affidavit, the complainants led by Makabayan president and senatorial bet Liza Maza accused Torres of violating the Comelec’s Anti-Discrimination and Fair Campaigning Guidelines.
“The acts that Torres committed as NTF-ELCAC director constitute an orchestrated campaign of harassment, disinformation, and vilification aimed at silencing dissent and influencing the outcome of the elections,” Maza said in an interview after filing the complaint at the Comelec Main Office in Intramuros, Manila.
Joining Maza in the complaint are fellow Makabayan senatorial candidates Rep. Arlene Brosas, France Castro, and Amirah “Mek” Lidasan, as well as party-list nominees Ma. Kristina Conti and Rep. Raoul Manuel.
In their petition, complainants alleged that Torres engaged in red-tagging and made false accusations without basis linking Makabayan groups and candidates to the CPP-NPA-NDF.
They also pointed at the use of government platforms and funds to disseminate partisan propaganda against their candidates.
Makabayan also said Torres engaged in the dissemination of false information and black propaganda during the campaign period.
They also claimed getting threats, intimidation, and incitement of violence.
It said Torres should be held liable for unlawful electioneering and interference in the electoral process being a public official.
“The harassment, intimidation, and threats that Makabayan leaders and members, campaign volunteers, and supporters face due to the NTF-Elcac’s red-tagging are not limited to online attacks but are felt on the ground during the campaign,” said Maza. – With Wendell Vigilia
