On 20th year of 'Hello, Garci,' Poe seeks tougher law vs. vote-buying

Senator Grace Poe on Wednesday took to the Senate plenary the need for electoral reforms, particularly stricter measures against vote-buying in the age of technology as she remembered the "Hello Garci" controversy that was exposed 20 years ago.

"Hello Garci" refers to the alleged wiretapped conversations where vote rigging in the 2004 elections was discussed by, among others, a woman presumed to be President Arroyo and man presumed to be Comelec Commissioner Virgilio Garcillano.

In a statement aired over national television in June 2005, Arroyo apologized for committing “a lapse in judgment." The former President said that to ensure that her votes are protected during the election canvass in 2004, she called “many people," including an unnamed election official, in obvious reference to Garcillano.

Arroyo's fiercest rival in the 2004 presidential elections was the late actor Fernando Poe Jr., the senator's adoptive father.

"A good two decades have passed since the “Hello Garci” was pulled off, and I am recalling it today, not as a daughter of the decent man who was robbed of votes, but as a senator of the Republic who believes it is her duty not to let this blot in our history fade from the nation’s memory," Poe said in a privilege speech.

"More than the need to move on, we need to move forward. Because I believe that it is not the passing of time that heals wounds, or mends wrongs. It can only be cured if we apply remedies that will prevent it from happening again, of lessons so powerful that it deters repetition, by sanctions that await those who try to commit it once more," she added.

While the 2004 controversial election "should have birthed laws that would prevent it," Poe lamented that it "did not fully happen."

"Yes, there were laws passed, like poll computerization, and minor fixes, but the biggest scourge, the buying of votes has not been purged out of our politics," Poe noted.

Aside from technological reforms, Poe said a lot more needs to be done in the electoral landscape, including redefining what electoral crimes words like “premature campaigning”, “vote-buying”, and “vote-selling” cover.

Vote-buying through e-wallets

Poe likewise raised that campaigning should effectively start as soon as candidacy is filed and that vote-buying should include all possible modes like the use of e-wallets which she said was observed in the 2022 elections.

The senator has filed Senate Bill 2664, which seeks to expand the definition of vote-buying to cover criminal developments exploiting the use of technology and/or computer, software, and applications in electoral activities, on the same day she delivered the privilege speech.

The penalty for cyber vote-buying under the proposed measure is six to 10 years imprisonment with no probation. 

"It is when we fail to act immediately that the 'Hello Garci' crisis continues to haunt us. There were many impeachment complaints but no one was [punished] for this crime. The guilty remains in power, taking refuge in our collective amnesia to delete our memory on the wrongs they have committed. Pagala-gala pa rin si Garci parang wala lang nangyari," she quipped.

Not sour-graping

While Poe made strong statements in her speech, the senator clarified that she is not "sour-graping," and she is just seeking reforms to ensure fair electoral exercises in the country.

"Pinag-isipan ko, ilalabas ko pa ba to kasi baka sabihin naman nila hanggang ngayon pa ba nagsa-sour grape [ka?]. Hindi po. Wala po akong poot na nararamdaman," she said.

"Kaya lang... kasi mag-e-eleksyon na naman next year. Sana naman medyo maging maayos. Kasi rampant na naman 'yung vote-buying e and if you want good people to run this country, we really have to make an effort to guard our votes and to make sure that there is a level playing field," she explained.

"Lapse in judgment"

In response, the office of Arroyo referred to some pages in her book, Deus ex Machina, for her explanation of the Hello Garci incident.

"On national television, I said, 'I am sorry' for my lapse in judgment in talking to a COMELEC official on the phone, though I clarified that my intent was not to influence the outcome of the election that had by then already been decided," Arroyo said in her book published in 2022. 

"That should be clear to any unbiased person looking at two straightforward facts: first by the time of the phone call, all the votes had already been counted and the count accepted by the COMELEC," she said.

Arroyo continued, "Second the certificates of canvass showing that I had won by a million votes were already used to proclaim the winning senators."

"Where do I stand on the question of 'I am sorry' now, some 15 years later? In the long run, it is better to own up to one's self-inflicted error.  It was a lapse in judgment, which is a genteel way of acknowledging that a phone call was a mistake," Arroyo said.

Zubiri, a good example

Senate President Pro Tempore Loren Legarda, the running-mate of Poe's father in 2004, praised Poe for her speech and clarified that they are not "bitter" about what had happened but this was meant to raise the need to protect the sanctity of the ballots.

As she acknowledged one-by-one the incumbent senators who have expressed support to her father's presidential battle in 2004, Poe also thanked Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri for being a "good example."

While Poe did not elaborate what she was referring to, it can be recalled that Zubiri resigned as a senator in 2011 after his name was dragged in the electoral fraud controversy which supposedly happened during the 2007 midterm elections.

The victory of Zubiri, who ranked 12th in the 2007 senatorial polls, was contested by now Senate Minority Leader Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel, who ranked 13th in the same elections.

"Mr President, I want you to thank you for your good example. Alam mo na yon... I really admire you and I respect you. You were probably the casualty of that [Hello, Garci] conflict," Poe said.

Zubiri was seen nodding his head while Poe was acknowledging him.

Pimentel: Hold fraudsters accountable

After Poe's speech, Pimentel raised the need to hold individuals behind electoral fraud accountable, noting that the 2004 controversy did not even prevent its repeat in 2007.

"Ayoko na sana magsalita dahil marami akong alam sa subject matter na ito e," Pimentel said in jest.

"Ang hirap i-prevent ng electoral fraud pero kailangan aware ang ating mga mamamayan na these things happen at actually this is the ultimate insult to the Filipino people kasi binabago ang resulta e," he pointed out.

He noted that in other countries, politicians who are involved in changing the will of the people are being "ostracized" by society and they are not given the chance to run for office again.

"Hindi nabibigyan ng second chance 'yon. Hindi na makakatakbo 'yon. So, this is the biggest crime that a syndicate or a politician or a person can commit to the Filipino people. Kasi ang message niyo sa taong bayan is, I will get to sit in that office whether you like it or not. That is the message of the fraudster," Pimentel stressed.

He then appealed to the Commission on Elections to pursue charges against persons involved in electoral fraud.

"Sana si Comelec is willing also to pursue and charge persons who they can prove to be responsible for electoral fraud," Pimentel said.

On the bill that Poe has filed, Pimentel suggested that the pieces of evidence that will be required under the measure should be less strict so vote-buying through electronic means could be "easier to prove."

Further, Pimentel emphasized the need to be alert in the upcoming 2025 midterm polls, noting that the Comelec will use a new automated system.

"We should all be on our toes and alert because we are using a new system in 2025. Ako, 'di naman ako kandidato, pero of course, for the cause of democracy, clean elections, kailangan alert po tayo," Pimentel said.

"Subaybayan natin ito, mag-monitor din tayo kasi this is a new system at ang weakness naman ng automated, hindi natin nakikita ang bilang. We are deprived of this paper trail to trace back, which we did in 2004 and 2007 and in other elections," he added. —LDF, GMA Integrated News