Photos by Tetch Torres-Tupas/INQUIRER.net
The “bilog na hugis itlog” or the oval-shaped spot in the ballot where voters were required to shade to indicate their chosen candidate disappeared and was replaced by a “mysterious square” which appeared to be a mark that the vote counting machines recognized, former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos said as he revealed an “anti-Marcos” scheme to manipulate the 2016 polls so he would lose the vice presidential race.
At a press conference held on Monday, Marcos said the ballot images that they have acquired from 12 towns in Camarines Sur and Negros Oriental showed that instead of the oval shape that voters need to shade during elections, it was replaced with a square beside the name of a particular candidate.
“Yung ibang balota kahit tatlo yung naka shade sa Vice President basta’t may square sa pangalan ni Mrs. [Leni] Robredo, binibilang po ang boto sa kanya. Ang question dito ano ang significance nung kahon? Di ba lagi nila sinasabi itiman ang bilog na hugis itlog. Wala naman sila sinabing kwadrado,” Marcos’ spokesman Atty. Vic Rodriguez said.
(Some of the ballots, even if three names for vice president were shaded, as long as there was a ‘square’ beside the name of Mrs. Robredo, the vote will be counted in her favor. The question now is what is the significance of that box? They always say that we should shade the oval shaped spot [to indicate our choice candidate]. Nothing was mentioned about a square.)
“Nawala yung oval, nawala yung itlog. Bakit nawala? Kung titingnan ninyo yung ballot images, noong 2010, 2013 andun yung bilog. Dito sa 2016, nawala, nasan napunta at bakit nawala yon,” Marcos asked.
(The oval disappeared, the egg disappeared. Why did it disappear? If you will look at the ballot images, in the 2010 and 2013 elections, the oval shape was there but it disappeared in 2016. Where did it go? Why did it disappear.)
Marcos, who filed an election protest against Vice President Leni Robredo, pointed out that ballot images “should be a faithful and authentic representation of the actual ballot.
“Even courts acknowledged that ballot images have the same evidentiary value as a ballot,” Marcos said.
As an example, Marcos showed a ballot image from San Nicolas, Iriga City in Camarines Sur where both the names of Robredo and Senator Antonio Trillanes IV were marked with a black shade. However, only the mark beside Robredo’s name was inside a square.
Vote summary showed that Robredo’s name was counted, instead of rejecting the ballot because of multiple marks.
Another ballot from Salvacion, Tigaon, Camarines Sur, showed that both the names of Senator Gregorio Honasan and Robredo were marked. But only Robredo has a square beside her name. Vote summary showed that that vote for Robredo was counted.
In Jilocon, San Jose, Negros Oriental, the ballot image showed that only Marcos’ name was marked. However, summary of votes showed that the vote for vice president became an undervote.
“Bakit yung boto ko naging undervote at hindi binilang? Bakit yung mga spoiled ballots ibinilang kay Robredo,” Marcos said.
(Why did the votes for me became undervotes and were not counted? Why were the spoiled ballots counted for Robredo?)
Marcos said there is a collusion between the Robredo camp, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and Smartmatic.
“This is an anti-Marcos campaign,” he said.
Rodriguez added that after their technical and legal team discovered the “shocking and disturbing” discrepancies in the hundreds upon hundreds of decrypted ballot images in Camarines Sur and Negros Oriental, which they were able to review in the last seven days, they could not help but wonder if the current automated election system is as “squeaky clean” as Comelec/Smartmatic claims it to be.”
Meanwhile, Marcos said the Comelec also created eight hubs but did not inform the candidates.
The hubs, based on the Comelec resolution, were created to address problems in the SD cards.
“I think they did it (cheating) by the secret creation of the 8 regional hubs, the 8 mini Comelecs that nobody knew about – not the public, not the candidates, not the party, nobody. Nobody knew about it except Comelec and Smartmatic,” Marcos added.
He said they did not confront the Comelec about it because the Comelec does not respond to them even if they demanded an explanation.
Comelec has yet to start the decryption of the SD cards from Iloilo.