Ballot boxes from Maguindanao town arrive at Comelec

The death of Maguindanao district school supervisor Musa Dimasidsing, supposed whistle-blower of election fraud in the province, may not be in vain after all as the uncanvassed election returns from 38 precincts of Pagalungan town arrived at the Commission on Elections office in Intramuros, Manila Thursday afternoon. The votes from eight of the 12 barangays of Pagalungan will be canvassed by 8 a.m. of Friday. Dimasidsing, who reportedly witnessed and exposed the alleged rigging of the votes in the municipality, died of gunshot wounds to the face and chest in the evening of June 9. He also filed a complaint against several members of the Board of Election Inspectors after accusing them of committing irregularities in the canvassing of results in Pagalungan. The district supervisor was said to have also confirmed the testimonies of Pagalungan Elementary School teachers that they were allegedly harassed and intimidated by political operators behind election irregularities in the town. Dimasidsing also reported to authorities that four ballot boxes were snatched by armed men believed to be working for a politician in Pagalungan during the May 14 elections. He also refused to sign a petition stating that there were no poll irregularities and atrocities during the elections. The ballot boxes containing the election returns were brought to the Comelec by Michael Abbas, director of Comelec-Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, other election officers and independent candidate for councilor Zandra Bai Adil. The ballot boxes were contained in a chained and padlocked steel box. Comelec personnel conducted an inventory on the boxes when it was brought to them. Adil said the election returns inside the ballot boxes were still uncanvassed after Pagalungan election officer Eliza Gazmin refused to get it from the board of election inspectors. She said Gazmin only canvassed votes from four barangays and proclaimed the winners based on these votes. She said the four barangays has 19 precincts or 2,000 voters. Adil added the BEIs transferred the ballot boxes from the school to Sangguniang Panglungsod when the classes started. And on June 29, the BEIs brought the ballot boxes to Pagalungan police station because the elected local officials who assumed office on July 2 will be using the Sangguniang Panglungsod. She said the police have no choice but to secure the metal case containing the ballot boxes because the BEIs chained it to the police station. -GMANews.TV