Winning Negros Occidental town mayor asks court to dismiss Peña’s protest

BACOLOD CITY — Moises Padilla mayor-elect Ella Garcia Yulo has asked the court to dismiss the election protest filed against her by Mayor Magdaleno Peña for lack of merit.

In her answer filed before the La Carlota City Regional Trial Court, Yulo asked that Peña’s complaint be dismissed for failure to detail the alleged electoral frauds, anomalies or irregularities in the protested precincts, her lawyer Karol Joseph Chiu, said.

She also asked that Peña be ordered to pay her P300,000 in moral damages, P300,000 in exemplary damages, P500,000 by way of attorney’s fees, and P100,000 in litigation expenses.

Peña had filed an election protest seeking a recount of votes in the 40 clustered precincts of Moises Padilla.

The Comelec said Yulo won the Moises Padilla mayoral race with 13,056 votes. Peña had 5,493 votes.

Peña said the poll results in 40 clustered precincts had “illegal vote totals that are not reflective of the true results of voting and counting in the protested precincts.”

A manual recount and revision would have to be conducted to “uncover and expose the massive manipulation, alteration, distortion, padding and shaving, fabrication and manufacturing of vote totals in the canvassed results,” his protest said.

Yulo, in her answer, said Peña’s allegations were false and insufficient to establish a valid cause of action, and that they were unsupported by evidence.

She said the election protest was clearly filed with vile and malicious intent to dishonor and discredit her.

“The protest contains malicious allegations and imputations that she committed illegal acts which have resulted to the undue damage on her reputation and good name,” Yulo’s answer said.

“This entitles her to an award of moral damages in accordance with the provision of the Civil Code of the Philippines on Human Relations and damages,” it added. (Editor: Leti Z. Boniol)