Rica Tinga to ask Comelec to declare failure of polls in Taguig

The camp of Taguig Mayor Laarni Cayetano's rival in the mayoral post said it would be asking the Commission on Elections to declare a failure of elections in the city.

 

Mayoral candidate Rica Tinga accused the head of the Board of Election Inspectors as well as school principals facilitating the automated polls of taking part in supposed irregularities.

 

"Unauthorized but genuine ballots with pre-shaded ovals were used in many parts of Taguig City with the participation of the BEI Chair and the Principals of the schools concerned," the Tinga camp said in a statement sent to GMA News Online.

 

The statement came out even as a partial and unofficial tally of the Taguig City Board of Canvassers showed Cayetano leading the mayoral race over Tinga.

 

The Tinga camp said the pre-shaded ballots were in favor of Mrs. Cayetano, who is the wife of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, and all candidates running alongside her, from congressmen down to councilors.

 

One of these congressmen is Mrs. Cayetano's brother-in-law and filmmaker Lino Cayetano, younger brother of Alan Peter. Like his sister-in-law, Lino Cayetano, was ahead of Henry Dueñas Jr, his rival for a congressional seat in Taguig's Second District.

 

"The indication is that there was failure of election in Taguig City... We intend to file a petition to declare a failure of election with the Comelec right away," the Tinga camp said.

 

GMA News Online sought the Cayetano group and lawyer Michael Camangeg, a member of the City Board of Canvassers, for their respective comments but they have yet to respond as of posting time.

 

The Tingas lamented how the Cayetano group had "full control" of the elections, with BEIs, school principals, and personnel from the local government's internal security office - the Public Order and Safety Office - "virtually replacing the police force."

 

The Tinga camp claimed that even the local police were on the side of Cayetano's group.

 

Early on in the race, Mrs. Cayetano garnered most of the votes from 20 percent of the transmitted poll results, getting 15,563 while Tinga getting 3,966.

 

Lino Cayetano got 19,606 votes while his competition Dueñas got 15,583 by the time 28.30 percent of all poll results in the city had been transmitted around 10 p.m. — ELR, GMA News