Marcos: Opposition must unite vs poll fraud

By EDMER F. PANESA
October 23, 2009, 8:01pm


Opposition parties may have failed to agree on a single candidate for the May 2010 presidential elections but this does not mean they cannot be united in guarding against a possible electoral fraud, according to an opposition congressman.

Ilocos Norte Rep. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. on Friday broached the idea of forming a united front composed of opposition parties to prevent a repeat of the alleged massive cheating during the 2004 elections in which the late opposition standard-bearer Fernando Poe Jr. lost to incumbent President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo.

Marcos said the united front may comprise the Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino-United Opposition (PMP-UNO) headed by former President Joseph Estrada, the Nacionalista Party of Sen. Manuel “Manny” Villar Jr., the Liberal Party of Sen. Benigno Simeon “Noynoy” Aquino III, and the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC), which plans to field Sen. Francis “Chiz” Escudero as standard-bearer in 2010.

“The united front against poll fraud will help ensure free, honest and democratic elections next year,” Marcos said.

The son of the late strongman Ferdinand E. Marcos said opposition parties need to come together to ensure that every vote is accurately and fairly counted since it would be the first time the country will experience a fully automated elections.

“It’s going to be the first nationwide automated elections in the country that is why we need to have a united front that would guard people’s votes,” he said.

The opposition lawmaker suggested to the parties to assign computer experts and lawyers in each precinct during Election Day to monitor the poll and raise any question about the process.

“If there are IT (information technology) experts and lawyers in each precinct, some candidates or parties will find it very hard to cheat. They can easily notice if there is something fishy going on,” he said.

Marcos said there was no assurance that massive cheating, which marred past manual elections, will no longer happen once the country’s elections go fully automated.

“We should all guard our votes. We should not allow a repeat of what happened to FPJ,” Marcos said, referring to Poe.

Although it appears that the 2010 elections will be a “battle of the opposition” as shown in the surveys, Marcos said opposition candidates should not be complacent and not underestimate the power of the administration machinery.

Marcos noted the continuing administration dominance in the House of Representatives and control of most local government units, which form a powerful and well-oiled political machinery.

He said the administration can use this strong political machinery to win the elections and retain control of Malacañang.

Defense Secretary Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro Jr., the standard bearer of the ruling Lakas-Kampi-CMD, continues to have low ratings and lag behind while opposition candidates – Aquino, Villar, Estrada, and Escudero – dominate the surveys.


Source: http://mb.com.ph/articles/226150/marcos-opposition-must-unite-vs-poll-fraud