KEEPING THE PEACE Candidates in Masbate sign an “integrity pledge” as they commit to ensure a peaceful and honest election in a province that has been wracked by intense rivalry among political clans. MARK ALVIC ESPLANA/Inquirer Southern Luzon
MASBATE CITY—Despite signing a covenant assuring their support for peaceful elections in Masbate, local politicians expressed doubt that their rivals would keep a promise to make this violence-wracked province quiet in the run-up to the May 9 polls.
Gov. Vicente Homer Revil, who is running for representative of the second congressional district, said he was hoping those who signed the covenant would honor their commitment to keep the exercise peaceful to allow Masbateños to choose their leaders without fear.
“I have already received four death threats from my political rivals. My district has the most number of election-related violent incidents,” he said.
“I have been an advocate for peace… since I joined politics in 2004. I would like to believe that those who signed the covenant would be true to their commitment,” said San Fernando Mayor Narciso Bravo Jr., who is running for governor.
Placer Mayor Jude Lanete, who is running for vice governor, said the issue of keeping the peace all boils down to the sincerity of candidates.
Masbate, one of the areas under the monitoring of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the police, has been a perennial election hot spot due to intense rivalry among political clans, election-related killings, and the presence of armed groups and communist rebels.
The covenant asked candidates to keep the campaign and the conduct of the election fair, honest and orderly. Candidates, it said, should stop employing goons and avoid vote buying, mudslinging and “dirty” campaigning that would confuse voters.
Except for former Gov. Antonio Kho and his wife, Rep. Elisa “Olga” Kho, close to 50 candidates aspiring for various elective positions in the province signed a peace covenant in a program initiated by the Comelec, Philippine National Police, Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Masbate Advocates for Peace (MAP).
Running for governor are Bravo of the National Unity Party (NUP), Antonio Kho of the Nacionalista Party (NP), and Rizalina Seachon-Lanete of the Nationalist People’s Coalition (NPC).
Ombudsman Conchita Carpio Morales earlier dismissed Lanete, the former governor, from public service due to alleged misuse of P112.29 million in Priority Development Assistance Fund (PDAF) when she was representative from 2007 to 2009. Lanete is detained and facing a plunder charge.
The first congressional district race will pit Maria Vida Bravo of NUP against Ciceron Altarejos of NP while the second district is a battle between Revil of the Liberal Party and Olga Kho of NP. In the third district, Scott Davies Lanete of NPC will face Wilton Kho of NP.
Bravo lamented that others who signed the peace covenant in the 2013 elections violated their commitment and resorted to employing “guns, goons and gold” in order to win.
“We will never have a peaceful and orderly election if others would follow this old political strategy,” he said.
Bravo asked his fellow politicians in the province to dump the old way of politics and resort to a “performance based” strategy.
The Task Force Masbate, manned by the police’s Regional Special Operation Task Group (RSOTG), has been monitoring armed groups supposedly hired by politicians in the province’s second district covering the towns of Cataingan, Balud, Esperanza, Cawayan, and Mandaon.
Reports received by the task force said these candidates were spending between P25,000 and P50,000 a month to maintain these armed groups.
Despite the apprehension of candidates, Judge Igmidio Camposano, MAP chair, said they will continue what they have started to keep the province peaceful during the election.
He said no election-related violent incident was reported in the province in the 2013 elections.
MAP, he said, would push the removal of Masbate from the list of election hot spots.
“We will see to it that Masbate will be progressive and peaceful and we will not anymore rely on battalions of policemen and soldiers to keep the province safe,” Camposano said.