Duterte appointees set to dominate Comelec

MANILA, Philippines — Poll watchdog Kontra Daya has expressed concern over the nomination of lawyer Michael Braganza Peloton to the Commission on Elections (Comelec), saying his ties with the Duterte administration could only worsen the credibility issues hounding the poll body, including the forthcoming 2022 elections.

A native of Davao City, Commissioner-nominee Peloton served on the Board of Directors and Management of the Philippine Reclamation Authority in 2018 and was a technical assistant on the Presidential Management Staff of the Office of the President in 2017.

“It cannot be denied that he is based in Davao and has served the Duterte administration,” University of the Philippines professor and Kontra Daya convener Danilo Arao said in an interview.

“With the retirement of [Commissioner Rowena] Guanzon, along with two others, it will practically be a Duterte-controlled Comelec,” Arao said.

Commissioners Guanzon and Antonio Kho Jr. and Chair Sheriff Abas are all set to retire in February 2022. Guanzon was appointed by former President Benigno Aquino III, while the rest of the commissioners were chosen by Duterte.

“It’s not just him, but the independence of the commission that is being questioned. The credibility of the 2022 elections is in peril … the 2022 polls will be supervised by a Comelec whose seven commissioners are all Duterte appointees,” Arao said.

“Theoretically, there should be nothing wrong if those assigned have a track record of independence, especially when it comes to dealing with the Duterte administration. But the situation right now is that the likes of Peloton who had past dealings with the government get appointed,” he added.

The Comelec on Monday welcomed Peloton, filling the vacancy left by the recent retirement of former Commissioner Luie Tito Guia.

Abas earlier said that Peloton’s vast experience in law and information technology was seen to help the Comelec better respond to the challenges in preparing for automated elections amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

But for Kontra Daya, it remains to be seen if Peloton’s “expertise” will be put to good use even if the Comelec claims that his information technology background is an asset.

“Comelec has a credibility issue right now and until it gets rid of Smartmatic, its credibility will be questioned all the more,” Arao said as he challenged Peloton “to be decisive and get rid of Smartmatic once and for all.”

The 2019 midterm elections were marred by glitches, including malfunctioning VCMs (vote counting machines) and SD (secure digital) cards and a seven-hour delay in the release of election results to the transparency server, which triggered concerns about the integrity of the poll results.

Peloton will serve for seven years, ending in Feb. 2, 2027. As a regular appointee, he will assume office after he successfully hurdles the confirmation proceedings on the Commission on Appointments.

Apart from Guanzon and Kho, the other commissioners are Marlon Casquejo and Socorro Inting.

Duterte has yet to name the successor to former commissioner Al Parreño, who also retired in February after completing his seven-year term.