No to Comelec quick count — KNP

Lawyers of the opposition Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino (KNP) have vowed to stop the Commission on Elections (Comelec) from holding a quick count after the May 10 elections to avoid confusing the public.

Speaking to reporters in Makati yesterday, Sixto Brillantes of Lawyers for Electoral Advancement and Democracy for Freedom, Prosperity and Justice (Lead for FPJ), said they would ask the Supreme Court to issue a temporary restraining order against a Comelec quick count.

"What is worrisome is that Malacañang knows about this but is very quiet about it," he said. "If we allow the Comelec to do a trending, the official ballots would be set aside."

The KNP said the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) has already been accredited by the poll body to conduct a quick count.

Earlier, other sectors raised similar concerns of possible widescale confusion if parallel quick counts of Namfrel and Comelec have contradictory results.

At a grand rally in Malolos, Bulacan Sunday night, KNP standard-bearer Fernando Poe Jr. again accused the administration of using public funds for Mrs. Arroyo’s campaign.

"Mga mandarambong ‘yan!" he told an estimated 5,000 people who had gathered at the town plaza.

The administration is "hungry and thirsty for power" and numb to the needs of the people, he added.

KNP lawyers said Poe will win by three million to six million votes if the administration does not cheat.

"Their cheating machinery is already in place," said lawyer Demaree Raval.