Poll watchdog files complaints vs 3 Comelec officials

MANILA, Philippines — Three high-ranking officials of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) are facing complaints before the Office of the Ombudsman for alleged irregularities in the conduct of the May 2019 midterm elections.

Election watchdog group Mata sa Balota, represented by Manuel Galvez and Diego Magpantay of the Citizen’s Crime Watch, on Tuesday filed complaints against Comelec Executive Director and Project Manager Jose Marundan Tolentino for serious dishonesty.

Deputy Director Teofisto Elnas Jr., and Spokesperson and Director James Jimenez on the other hand are facing raps for supposed gross neglect of duty.

They are seeking for the preventive suspension of the three, and eventually, their removal from office.

“This complaint prays for immediate preventive suspension of the respondents who are under Ombudsman jurisdiction for serious dishonesty and/or gross neglect of duty under Revised Rules on Administrative Cases in the Civil Service (RRACCS) Section 46-A subsections 1 & 2 leading to Ombudsman investigations preparatory to Impeachment,” Mata sa Balota said in its complaint.

“The Ombudsman may investigate but not prosecute the Comelec Chairman and six Commissioners. However, Executive Director and Project Manager Jose “Jun” Marundan Tolentino Jr is under Ombudsman jurisdiction,” the group added.

The group said that Elnas is liable as the hands-on manager of the automated elections, while Jimenez should be held accountable for releasing false information about the glitches that marred the recently-concluded elections.

Numerous reports of malfunctioning vote counting machines (VCMs) and corrupted SD cards were reported during the midterm elections in different parts of the country.

This delayed voting procedures, and forced voters in some areas to leave their shaded ballots to election officers, who would then feed the ballots once the VCMs were fixed or after replacement machines arrive.  (Editor: Gilbert S. Gaviola)

READ: Vote counting machines malfunctioned in 4 Marinduque polling centers

READ: Corrupted SD cards also affected overseas voting – Comelec