Soco seeks recon on protest ruling

CEBU, Philippines - Businessman Glenn Anthony Soco has filed a motion for reconsideration on the dismissal of the election protest he filed against the late vice governor Gregorio Sanchez Jr. before the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Second Division in Manila.

Through counsel George Erwin Garcia, Soco asserted that the commission “gravely erred” in issuing its May 8, 2012 order as the same is contrary to the mandate of prevailing rules and jurisprudential doctrines in an election contest.

Soco alleged the Comelec has disregarded his objections to the ballots of Sanchez.

He said further that the commission may have erred gravely in ruling that he failed to establish the merit or legitimacy of his protest from the pilot protested precincts when it was clearly shown that there are variances/discrepancies between the results as per statement of votes by precinct and the actual recounting of the contested ballots.

He further alleged that the Commission dismissed the instant election protest without giving him the opportunity to present his case contrary to the mandate of liberality in election proceedings.

Soco pointed out that the irregularities found during the revision of ballots, which resulted in the discovery if numerous ballots for the late Sanchez, should have been invalidated but nevertheless credited in his favor.

A total of 685 valid ballots were reportedly found erroneously not credited to Soco during the May 10, 2010 elections.

“There being no objection or opposition interposed by the protestee, it is respectfully submitted that the grounds relied upon in this protest was sufficiently established,” Soco’s motion reads. —Gregg M. Rubio/JMO

The Comelec Second Division conducted a revision of ballots representing 20 percent of the total clustered precincts in Cebu and the result favored Sanchez.

In its order, it said that under the best of scenarios for protestant Soco, protestee Sanchez would still beat him by 17,089 votes in all protested precincts.

With this, the Comelec second division ruled that there is "no cogent reason to proceed with the recount of the rest of his protested precincts."

Soco described the decision as highly questionable, still believing that he won in the 2010 elections as vice governor.

In asking for reconsideration, Soco said that such proceedings should be allowed to proceed with the recount/revision of the remaining non-pilot protested precincts.

Sanchez’s daughter, Engr. Grecilda “Gigi” Sanchez-Zaballero, earlier told Soco to accept defeat following his plan to appeal the dismissal of his protest.

Zaballero expressed that the family is relieved with the dismissal of Soco’s election protest, as it is the second time the choice of the people was confirmed.

The vice governor succumbed to cancer in April 29 last year. —(FREEMAN)