Recall petition filed versus Sulu governor

ZAMBOANGA CITY, Philippines – Political opponents of Sulu Governor Sakur Tan have filed a petition with the Commission on Elections to unseat him, citing loss of confidence in his leadership. Ali Judah, a resident of Lugus, an island town of Sulu, accused Tan of failing to improve the peace and order situation in the province, pointing to the kidnapping of ABS-CBN television presenter Ces Drilon in May. The trio secretly went to the outlawed Abu Sayyaf group to interview one of its leader, but were eventually held and released weeks later after paying huge ransom. Judah, in a 26-page petition, also said that Tan failed to deliver basic government services to residents and accused the governor of terminating livelihood programs of the past administration of Benjamin Loong, whom Tan defeated in the 2007 election. Tan could not be reached for comment about the petition, but one of his executive assistants, Professor Fred Concepcion said the governor was not disturbed by the recall petition. He said the petition was baseless and that Sulu's peace and order and economic stability have drastically improved under the new administration. "The people know what Governor Tan has accomplished and the many programs the provincial government is currently undertaking to bring about peace and development in Sulu, which was neglected in the past in many terms," Concepcion said. Tan, a known philanthropist in the southern Philippines, won by a landslide against Loong and Nur Misuari, the former leader of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF). The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Tan beat Loong, his nearest rival, by more than 50,000, a victory unprecedented in Sulu’s political history. Tan, a well-respected community leader, also served as governor of Sulu in 2001. Those who were pursuing the recall petition also accused Tan of terminating Loong's "Arms to Farms" program, which provided agricultural support to farmers in Sulu, mostly in the province's second district. Supporters of Tan said the program was not of Loong and had been developed by the US Agency for International Development (USAID) to assist former MNLF rebels transition into peaceful, civilian lives. However, the program was used as campaign propaganda in the past elections. Concepcion said many of those who signed the recall petition allegedly had fictitious names. Others claimed they were lured into signing unknown documents in exchange for money and rice by people they did not even know. "Governor Tan has introduced many reforms and his administration is transparent and fair. You can ask ordinary people on the street about the governor and they will proudly say, for sure, that he is probably the best civil worker in Sulu. He is honest and clean and these are what other people are so scared because they know that Governor Tan has little patience with thieves and corrupt officials," Concepcion said. It was unknown who funded Jilah's petition, but the local poll office said 62,631 alleged voters from Sulu's 19 towns had signed the recall papers on August 29. Lawyer Vidsfar Julie, regional deputy chief of the Comelec, said the poll body will have to carefully verify all those names who signed the recall petition whether they are legitimate voters or not. "This recall petition has to go through the process of verification to ensure all the names in the petition are really registered voters," Julie said. The petition was believed to be connected with Tan's order to the police and military authorities to disband private armies of politicians who are known warlords in Sulu. Tan also ordered authorities to stop the smuggling of contraband and illegal weapons into the province, many of which fall into the hands of rebels and private armies of politicians. Last year, Tan and provincial lawmakers also rejected a proposal by politicians, who are now in their last terms, to divide Sulu into two provinces so they can again run in 2010 national and local elections. Political dynasties are rampant in Sulu province, where many politicians win by either by fraud or cheating and vote-buying. Sulu has 19 municipalities, 10 of which are in the main island of Jolo. The province has a population of 849,670. - GMANews.TV