Robredo camp: PET did not junk draft decision in VP poll protest

MANILA, Philippines — The camp of Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday debunked the claims of the lawyer of former Sen. Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos that the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) had junked the draft ruling of Associate Justice Benjamin Caguioa on the electoral protest.

Robredo’s lead counsel, Romulo Macalintal, explained that the PET did not junk Caguioa’s report as “as it was the basis of the PET in holding in abeyance further proceedings in Marcos protest until the parties have submitted said memoranda.”

READ: Marcos lawyer reminds Robredo camp: Caguioa’s draft decision was junked

The PET earlier did not rule on the committee report on the result of the revision of ballots from three pilot provinces chosen by Marcos — Camarines Sur, Iloilo and Negros Oriental.

Instead, the Tribunal asked both parties to comment on the report and submit memoranda on other issues relating to the jurisdiction as well as about Marcos’s third cause of action which seeks to nullify election results for the vice presidency in Lanao Del Sur, Basilan and Maguindanao.

“Contrary to his claim, the PET resolution did not resolve ‘to proceed with Marcos protest.’ The PET has yet to study its merits after the parties have submitted their respective memoranda on various issues,” Macalintal said in a statement.

Macalintal also denied that Robredo idd not know the details of the election protest as claimed by Marcos’s lawyer Vic Rodriguez.

“That’s my consistent request for Mrs. Robredo. This case is not an ordinary case. So before she goes out and talks on the national TV and whatever press conferences or interview, we wish that she read the case. Please understand the case and the applicable rules,” Rodriguez said.

READ: Marcos lawyer to Leni: Know details of protest case first before presscons

Case should be dismissed

With the release of the report, Macalintal said that the case should be dismissed according to Rule 65 of the PET Rules, which provides for the dismissal of an election protest if the protestant fails to show any substantial recovery from his chosen three pilot provinces.

Macalintal explained that the report showed that Robredo recovered 17,520 votes from the three pilot provinces while Marcos only gained 2,427 votes.

“Thus, the unanimous findings of all the PET Members that Robredo won in the three pilot provinces chosen by Marcos since both the majority and the dissenting Justices [Antonio] Carpio and Caguioa agreed that ‘based on the final tally, after the revision and appreciation of the votes in the three (3) pilot provinces, Robredo increased her lead with 14,436,337 votes, over protestant Marcos who obtained 14,157,771 votes’,” Macalintal said.

Macalintal stressed that the three pilot provinces were supposed to be “the best provinces that exemplify (would show) the electoral frauds” in the protest.

“We reiterate that, based on the facts and figures contained in the PET resolution, Marcos did not make any substantial recovery after the revision of ballots from the three pilot provinces which he personally chose,” Macalintal said.

“On the contrary, it was Robredo who made overwhelming and substantial recovery which justifies the dismissal of Marcos election protest for its apparent and exposed lack of merit,” he added.

/atm