SC grants Nene's plea vs Comelec resolution

The Supreme Court granted yesterday the petition of Sen. Aquilino "Nene" Pimentel to nullify a 1998 resolution of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that cleared Justice Undersecretary Antonio Llorente, former chief prosecutor of Pasig City, and a Comelec official of allegations of vote-padding.

The High Court ordered the indictment of Llorente and Ligaya Salayon, chairperson of the Pasig City board of canvassers, because they approved a statement of votes which indicated that Sen. Juan Ponce Enrile got 35,765 votes in Pasig in the May 1995 elections, while Pimentel's votes decreased by 4,337.

Associate Justice Bernardo Pardo, the former Comelec chairman, abstained in the case.

In a unanimous decision, penned by Associate Justice Sabino de Leon, the Supreme Court said the two government officials' defense of "honest mistake and oversight due to fatigue" was "incredible and simply unacceptable."

The tribunal said there was probable cause that Llorente and Salayon violated the Electoral Reforms Law of 1987 (Republic Act 6646) on the basis that there was "virtual admission" on their part with regard to the discrepancies.

Llorente, reacting to the tribunal's decision, said he will appeal the ruling, describing the charges as "part of the risk of the trade."

"It was my baptism of fire in government service. That (canvassing) was my very first day in government service. It's just incredible for me to do these things, and to somebody who I even voted for (Pimentel)," he said.