CA set to convene on Melo’s credentials, plans for Comelec

The Commission on Appointment’s (CA) committee on constitutional offices will convene possibly in the next weeks to determine if newly appointed Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Jose Melo is fit for the job despite his advanced age.

But age doesn’t seem to be an issue after Comelec officials rallied yesterday behind the 75-year-old ex-jurist, saying Melo is very qualified to lead the pack of senior citizens in the commission.

Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano, chairman of the CA committee on constitutional offices, said he will question Melo not over his age and credentials but on his plans to improve the image of the Comelec after recurrent allegations of fraud, particularly in the 2004 elections.

“It is not enough that they are competent and have integrity. We want to know what are their stands on the issues, such as what they intend to do to ensure that the next presidential elections in 2010 are clean,” Cayetano said.

Aside from Melo, Cayetano said the CA will also subject to strict scrutiny the appointments of two new commissioners who will replace retiring commissioners Resurreccion Borra and Florentino Tuason.

Borra and Tuason are set to retire on Feb. 2, the same day resigned Comelec chairman Benjamin Abalos was slated to retire had he not been dragged into the national broadband network mess.

Meantime, senators reiterated yesterday their call on Melo to prioritize the computerization of the electoral process in time for the 2010 election.

Sen. Francis Escudero expressed hope that Melo is following media coverage of the presidential primaries in the United States so that he will be inspired to replicate the fast ballot count there.

“I hope he’s channel-surfing so he’ll be amazed at how election results are counted, reported and accepted on the same day that Americans vote,” Escudero said.

The freshman senator hopes that the “much-delayed and much-abused” modernization of the polling system in the country will finally take off during Melo’s watch.

Escudero added that the high level of information technology used by Filipinos makes them ready for IT-aided exercise of the right of suffrage.

“If Filipinos already entrust their money to a cash machine, or manage their wealth through Internet banking, or book a plane ride through the computer, I don’t see why they will not place such trust on a machine to count their votes,” he said.

He said IT “in the hands of competent, clean and committed individuals can be harnessed to finally end the slow-motion way of counting votes here.”

Administration Sen. Ramon Revilla Jr. and Sen. Rodolfo Biazon also joined fellow senators in welcoming Melo’s appointment.

“He is a man of integrity and unquestionable credibility. His track record showed these traits particularly as head of the Melo Commission, which investigated the extrajudicial killings which hounded the administration,” Revilla said.

“Chairman Melo will surely be an asset to the Comelec. I appeal to him to implement the much-needed reforms in the electoral body. The people’s right to vote will go to waste if we cannot protect their vote,” he added.

“Credible elections could provide political stability. Peace and progress can only be achieved for our country if the legitimacy of the public official formulating national policies and implementing national programs of government is not in question,” Biazon said.

“Justice Melo had shown independence of mind through the Melo Commission report which investigated the cases of extrajudicial killings and forced disappearances and concluded that these may be attributed to agencies of government. The UN Rapporteur, European Union and even our own Commission on Human Rights had supported such conclusion. As a matter of fact, no less than the Supreme Court has pending actions on the Jonas Burgos incident, thus the issuance of the writ of amparo,” Biazon noted.

“If his brand of independence, as shown through the Melo Commission report, could be the mark of his performance as he discharges his duties as Comelec chairman, then there is hope that the Filipinos will enjoy true democracy,” he added.

“The first order of the day for Justice Melo would be to cleanse the Comelec of scalawags and inspire clean thinking members of the commission, for there are lots of them.”

Sen. Panfilo Lacson, meanwhile, wants to question Melo over his perceived links with Abalos, noting that Melo was always on Abalos’ side during the Senate inquiry on the national broadband network deal with ZTE Corp.

Age doesn’t matter

Rallying behind their new leader, Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said age would definitely not hamper Melo’s performance when he assumes office, as other septuagenarian commissioners have proven.

“There are other commissioners who are also over 70 years but they have shown stamina and energy in their job,” Sarmiento disclosed.

He noted that Comelec commissioner Romeo Brawner is also 75 years old while commissioner Nicodemus Ferrer is 72.

“If the new chairman would observe the health regimen of commissioners Brawner and Ferrer he would be as energetic as a young commissioner like me,” Sarmiento added in jest.

Critics of the administration questioned Melo’s appointment as Comelec chairman, saying he is too old for the job.

But based on his credentials as a former Supreme Court justice and Civil Service commissioner, poll officials said the incoming chairman is a perfect choice.

“His credentials are a plus factor and we expect his appointment to give a big push to the Comelec,” Sarmiento said.

For his part, Brawner said Melo has the integrity, competence and independence that make him the best choice for the post.

“We expect the best with his appointment,” Brawner said.

Considering that the Comelec has adjudicatory functions, Brawner said Melo is well prepared for his new position since he is a former justice.

“There is now an invasion of the judiciary in the Comelec because all of us are former justices,” Brawner pointed out.

‘Much-needed shot in the arm’

Reacting on the appointment, Vice President Noli de Castro said Melo’s selection is a “breath of fresh air for the poll body.”

De Castro said Melo’s appointment is a “much needed shot in the arm especially in preparation for the next elections.”

“It’s been months that the Comelec had no leader and this gave the President ample time to select the best to lead one of the most important agencies of the government,” De Castro said in Filipino.

He added that Melo is an accomplished jurist who excelled in his field and with an unblemished record will take the helm of a controversial government agency.

The Vice President particularly cited Melo’s encouraging commitment to make the full automation of the electoral process his top priority.

The automation of the electoral process, he said, would greatly improve the voting system that has been hounded by controversies and characterized by claims and counter-claims of cheating, especially in the counting of votes.

“I’m hoping that the appointment of Justice Melo as Comelec chairman will lessen or eventually eradicate what other candidates have been saying that they did not lose the elections but were only cheated,” he added.

The Vice President’s comments coincided with the reaction of Sen. Loren Legarda’s election lawyer Sixto Brillantes that Melo “will be the most neutral chairman ever appointed in the Commission.”

De Castro stressed that more commissioners with integrity and worthy of people’s trust should be appointed to the Comelec.

Among those mentioned in the shortlist for the two upcoming vacancies is State Prosecutor Jovencito Zuño. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Pia Lee-Brago, Michael Punongbayan, Helen Flores