Party-list group says vote fraud clear

A leader of a party-list group that is claiming it had been a victim of vote padding and shaving (dagdag-bawas) described evidence of fraud in the tally of votes for the party-list election as strong.

In Lucena City, members of the party-list group Confederation of Non-Stock Savings and Loans Associations (Consla) are ready to join protest rallies against what they said was a tainted tally of votes that robbed them of a seat in the House of Representatives.

Retired Air Force Col. Ricardo Nolasco Jr., the first nominee of Consla, said evidence pointing to the discrepancy in the vote tally for party-list groups of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) is enough to warrant an investigation.

“How can canvassing by PPCRV, based on the Comelec transparency server, and canvassing by the Comelec itself churn out completely different results?” Nolasco said in a Consla statement.

The final, official tally for party-list groups by Comelec showed Consla got a total of 213,814 votes and ranked No. 54.

But based on a quick count by PPCRV, shown in its Twitter feed on May 11, Consla had already garnered 555,896 votes.

Nolasco said Consla represents a million members of 58 nonstock savings and loan associations.

Consla supporters in Lucena City offered prayers and Mass to help in the call for an investigation of the discrepancy in vote tallies.

“Most cooperative members are agitated,” said a Consla leader in Lucena who requested he not be named for fear of sanctions from his employer, a member of a rival party-list group.

“I can’t blame them because they all campaigned hard and voted for Consla,” said the Consla leader.

Ready for protests

The Consla leader said the members, mostly low-income earners who joined cooperatives, are just waiting for the go signal to join any form of protest actions to fight for justice and expose the alleged election anomaly.

Consla lawyer Rodolfo San Diego had written Comelec Chair Andres Bautista and pleaded for an investigation.

The local party-list leader said cooperative members accused corrupt Comelec officials as the brains behind the alleged election fraud.

“And that accusation will stick unless the Comelec conducts an honest investigation to correct the injustice committed against Consla,” he said.