BALANGA CITY – Five losing candidates for mayor in Bataan filed, as of Friday, individual election protests claiming that cheating took place through the Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines and asked that manual count of votes be made.
Dr. Marlo Zuniga of Orani, Vice-Mayor Emmanuel Cortez of Samal and former Mayor Armando Ramos of Bagac filed Friday afternoon their petition with Branch III of the Regional Trial Court in Balanga City.
Former Mayor Nelson David of Limay and re-electionist Mayor Jose Santos of Orion filed their election protest Thursday with RTC Branch IV and III, respectively.
Zuniga said he filed the petition to answer the question of his supporters where their votes went. “Maraming taga-Orani ang hindi makapaniwala sa naging resulta ng halalan sapagka’t hindi raw lumabas ang kanilang sentimyento sa nakasaad sa balota,” said the physician who once also became mayor of Orani.
He claimed that the results of the election were either earlier programmed or there was a multiplier effect on the votes of his opponent.
Zuniga lost to re-electionist Mayor Benjamin Serrano, Jr.
“May ebidensiya kami ng matinding pandaraya sa pamamagitan ng PCOS na isang krimen hindi laban sa akin kundi sa taong-bayan,” the doctor said.He said he will not stop until the truth comes out. “Nagkaroon ng electoral sabotage. Ibasura na mga makinang PCOS dahil ito ang sumisira ng demokrasya,” Zuniga said.
He said that through the election protest the court will order the manual count of votes that will determine cheating through the PCOS machines.
“Nagtataka ang mga tao lalo na ang nasa religious group kung saan napunta ang kanilang boto,” Rev. Randy Lapuz of IRM Church in Orani said while a companion displayed a T-shirt marked “Hokos Picos.”
Samal Vice-Mayor Emmanuel Cortez said many poll watchers expressed surprise that election returns were not yet transmitted to the servers of the municipality but results were already known. “Hindi malaman ng mga watchers kung saan nanggaling ang resulta,” he said.
Re-electionist Samal Mayor Generosa dela Fuente defeated Cortez.
“Baka nga nagkaroon ng hokos picos kaya gusto naming magsagawa ng manual count. Kung merong nangyaring hindi ayos, dapat magbayad kung sino ang may kagagawan at hindi na ito dapat maulit sa 2016,” Cortez said.
Former Bagac Mayor Armando Ramos said they noticed many discrepancies in the election returns. He said that his opponent re-electionist Mayor Rommel del Rosario got the same number of 297 votes in clustered precinct 1 and 2.
“Hindi lang sa dalawang polling precinct nagkaroon ng parehas na bilang ng boto kundi sa sampung precinct,” Ramos claimed.
