Ha! And you thought we will no longer bore you with more election coverage. Well this one is too good to not blog about. It’s kind of like the case filed by Joe Molintas vs. Morris Domogan.
PPCRV denounces vote-buying in Mt. Province
From the PIA
Baguio City (31 May) — “The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting-IBP Legal Network for Truthful Elections (PPCRV-LENTE) denounces and condemns the massive vote buying in various forms, and other election irregularities perpetrated by candidates and their political henchmen in practically all barangays in the Mountain Province,” PPCRV coordinator Fr. John Marion Buyagawan said in a statement issued today.
“Earlier on the campaign, cellular phone cards bearing the initial of a congressional candidate, were distributed for free to the youth campaigners. In the barrios, ‘ato’ people and clans were encouraged to have reunions and were given money for pigs, rice, ingredients, and drinks,” said Buyagawan.
The PPCRV official bared that barangay officials and campaign leaders “were given at least P30,000. Some two or three days before election day on May 14 these officials or campaign leaders were given P50,000 or higher, depending upon the number of voting precincts covered, for distribution to the voters, in various amounts: P200, P500, P1,000. Each watcher per precinct was also given P1,500, plus P500 for food; P500 each for assistors, and P200 for leaders. In some barangays, most if not all the voters were appointed leaders, assistors or watchers.”
The PPCRV statement continues:
“Initial reports also revealed that on election day in at least two barangays in the province, voters were herded into “vote buying stations” where they were given drinks and money, and were urged to vote for an incumbent high government official.
“In Paracelis, a special election may be conducted due to ballot box snatching. It was already learned that voting in about 50% in the municipality was supervised by board of election inspectors whose composition was questionable. In Sagada, a disqualification case was filed against a mayoralty candidate on charge of vote buying, while in Betwagan, Sadanga, ballot boxes were snatched and burned.
“Now that elections are over, there is a big job to do. Let’s work together in our quest for peaceful, clean and honest elections in our province. We urge democracy-loving individuals who personally witnessed those anomalies to come out to the open and execute affidavits in order that appropriate cases maybe filed against perpetrators of election fraud.
“We, therefore, strongly encourage everyone to come forward and support us in this worthy endeavor. Please submit your comments, inputs and reactions to: PPC-RV office, Teng-ab, Bontoc, Mountain Province. Contact Fr. John Marion Buyagawan, PPCRV Provincial Coordinator – Mountain Province CP# 09209288521 or bontoclagawe@yahoo.com.ph / PPC-RV Local Coordinators in your Mission Stations; Rev. Lioba Achawon CP# 09183168198.” (PPCRV)
Our take: Wow! Really wow! Mt. Province politicians are really becoming icky, no? The longest serving is of course the ickiest one. To you vote buying politicians, may you and your families live in penury forever after your term ends. And may others take advantage of your poverty the way you are now taking advantage of the poverty of your kailiyans. (Boy, we don’t want to become negative in this blog but vote buying is really becoming a serious problem in the Cordilleras so we can’t help being negative.)
As for that Sagada case, ito lang masasabi natin diyan: “Pot, meet kettle”. Or in the colorful Sagada language it goes, “Ine paliso ay malaslasan tay paliso ay nabibiyungan.”
IMAGE CREDITS: Balkan Fever and Bangko Sentral.
“Ine paliso ay malaslasan tay paliso ay nabibiyungan.” — aha, i like that, beautifully worded^-^..
Ay apo tet-ewa, politics in Sagada now started to be a lousy play.. I got really pissed off upon hearing all those “yada yada”
and reading those letters from this politician and that politician before the elections.. who’s who??? (of course i have my own opinions but id rather not say;-))
And yeah, there was even a caravan. That was friday for one of the candidates, syempre,
adi menpaabak nan esang, nin-caravan abes issan sabado. (ado baw iman nan talak da). Dadapay kanan en wada kano’y menlus-lusoy is siping!!
aye, dan sak-en nan mid gasat na tay adik amo di ninlusoyana ta ennak koma tinmaya.. haha.. but i believe thats true, meron talagang vote buying.. sad sad:-(
i just can’t imagine how rotten the next election could become.
By the way, ur doing a good job in here.. Itultuloy u ta wada dumag-dag-osan, i usually visit everyday, idwani ak lng bawet ay nin comment tay ginmagagetak.. ^-^
Hi Diklawan,
Aha! You must be a relative if your real name is Diklawan 🙂 Thanks for your comments. I didn’t know about those competing caravans (yaiiks, pataasan ba ng ihi?) although someone told me about those letter writing (do u have copies by any chance, pa email or post naman sa comments so we will “analyze” them hehe). Hopefully the next elections will be a kindlier one ano?
Thanks again and we hope you continue to join us 🙂
^diklatwo^.. ine relative ay diklawan, usto nan said mo tay caravan..cavancavan di pilak ya aysus pay..ammo pay. but going back to votebuying and the noble role of the churchand reverends…no ti problema ket nainflewence ti botos through “buying” in “varrios” forms, what about the influence of projects of politicians in church lands?? apay haan ngata nga makainfluwence to la unay met nga botos ti “churchsaints” who benefit? yes we denounce votebuying and undue influence on account of money or other forms but let us look at our own “paddogan”…like dat politico-clerico project nga dakkel nga waiting shed (he he gym kano)iti maysa nga madaydayaw nga daga iti centro ti montanosa….kwuartan ti gobyerno inusar iti pribado nga daga ni padre damaso ho ho ho ho!!! NGAN PAY DI KANAN TAKOS DI ay bebsat isnan PAMMATI???
Hi Anonymous,
Ay no siyak ah ket it is a greater sin if vote buying is coursed through the church.
But I’m a bit confused, are you referring to a public gym built on the land where the Anglican church used to stand in Sabangan? Kasi that would not be vote buying but a land dispute.
Or are you referring to a different government funded project on church property?
Thanks.
oppss.. I was out during the weekend.. nway, pasenxa tay i did not bring copies of those letters.. wada id sagada, toan nu egay da inyilo^-^(padasek ay mangipa-email nu wada paylng). And yes, about that church issue may mga letters din tungkol jan eh. You are right, naging deciding factor din ng mga ibang ppol un in voting tay id sagada(ay mostly Anglican nan ppol) et mag-si-txt nan friends ay si “so and so” kano nan ibotos, masdaaw ak tay dan aped ado nan mangikomkompanya ken xa, only to find out ay it is because of that Anglican church land in Sabangan. haaayy.. hopefully nga politics would get better next election..
P.S. diklawan is my real ethnic name.. wen way agi mi pay dakayo tay ado ado nan agi mi.. hehe
bill…
he he brod, i refer to a government-funded gym id Bontoc, All Saints Anglican Compound..
diklatwo
Hi Diklawan,
Thanks agi hehe. Hope we can somehow get our hands to those letters no? So we will praise the letters if they are praiseworthy or mock them if they are worth mocking 🙂
Hi Diklatwo,
Thanks. Never knew that. But that should not be a reason for Anglicans to be beholden to a politician. Kasi pera din iyan ng bayan at hindi personal fund ng politiko 🙂
Disappointing talaga ang nangyayari sa Anglican Church lalo sa Rex. Parang di na Jesus ang Dios ng mga social climbers doon. Domogan na. They are blind followers even if Domogan can not explain why he insists that P88M was already spent on the BGH fly-over. It does not take an engineer to know that not even P5M was spent on the project, ano? Alam na nating kung saan na napunta ang iba.
Kaya gusto kong mag-born again na lang.
mag saksi na lang tau! hehehe! born again? ganda rin, parang concert ang misa nila!
just a question pls, domogan is an anglican or INC?
Hi Anon (9:52),
Ikaw ha, baka sugurin ka ng sinasabi mong social climbers hehehe. I really believe that our own co-members should be the ones who should tell us when we are going outside the right path. I think the UCCP (United Church) is doing a better job than us Anglicans. Tignan ninyo si Pres. Ramos hindi nila tinantanan voicing out their concerns about his administration. So we can say what we will about Ramos but on hindsight I think that his administration would be the best administration in recent history. Part of that is due to the fact that his own church kept him on his toes kaya hindi siya naging abusado. If Anglicans can’t be as critical, I just hope that they won’t be blind to the fault of their members in government. Eh sino pang mag-cocorrect sa atin kung hindi tayo.
Sige ka, if you leave the church eh puro na lang yong social climbers na sinasabi mo ang maiiwan. [I’m not saying that you are correct in your assessment na S.C. ang taga Rex ha.]It is our church and we should also fight for it hehe.
Hi Anon (10:56)
He is Anglican. Thanks.
thankz Bill:
kaya nmn pala eh. bka nabalatohan ni domogan mga social climber na mga un kaya siya na ang dios nila! 😀
Hi Anon,
LOL. Hindi naman siguro 🙂
hi anon>
sympathize ak kenka about your “disappointing ang nangyayari” experience with the Anglican church ta makitak dayta especially Baguio. Now kuna ni diklatwo nga “government-funded gym” manen Bontoc Anglican. Wen ah apay ngay agproject ti gobyerno on Anglican land? Allowed ba ‘yan? Apay ngay nga ipalubos ti Anglican? We know nga adda pasimuno na dayta on both sides like ti Padi wenno Madre ken ti Opisyal ti gobyerno na makinproject. Di pay ikompanya da ti makinproject nga opisyal? Idi napalabas nga bulan ket nangeg ko ti tungtungan inoman Baguio nga adda papadi ti Anglican campaigning against Vic Dominguez. Agpayso ngata dyay? Does that mean agdawat da ti project para ti Anlican and turn their back and campaign against government officials? Apo Bill, disappointing and disawatan..haan nga maawatan…ti simbaan…Angli…ahhh
Hi Anonymous,
Ideally hindi talaga dapat ma-involve ang simbahan sa electoral politics but unfortunately these things are happening at the local (gov’t funded Anglican gym) and national (INC votes, El Shaddai, etc) level. We can only hope that Philippine politics will get healthier in the future para mawala ang mga ganito but puro hopes na lang yata tayo.
But as I said before, as an Anglican, kung disappointed tayo eh let’s not leave naman the church kasi sino ngayon ang matitira doon di ba. Eh kung lahat ng good people ay aalis, di puro ehem na lang ang maiiwan hehe. Thanks 🙂
it is really disappointing to some members of the anglican church but please don’t focus yourself on the negative sides…BUT rather focus yourself to worshipped GOD.ta adi amamed masina nan anglicano….THANKS AND MORE POWERFUL TO ALL aNLICANS..