Panel wants 2 Comelec officials grilled over Bedol case

MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Appointments (CA) confirmed yesterday the appointments of two new commissioners of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) but only after grilling them over former Maguindanao election supervisor Lintang Bedol, who was accused of manipulating the results of the senatorial elections in 2007.

While the appointments of Comelec commissioners Lucenito Tagle and Armando Velasco were confirmed, fellow commissioner Leonardo Leonida’s confirmation had to be deferred on the request of Sen. Jamby Madrigal who failed to attend the hearing.

Madrigal sent a letter to the CA, saying she had many questions for Leonida but she had to attend a hearing of the Senate environment committee.

Tagle and Leonida were recently appointed to the Comelec while Velasco served as the poll body’s regional director for Cordillera Autonomous Region.

During a CA hearing, Sen. Francis Pangilinan asked Tagle and Velasco on the whereabouts of Bedol who has a standing arrest warrant from the Comelec for indirect contempt for his failure to attend Comelec hearings investigating the alleged massive cheating in Maguindanao during the 2007 midterm elections.

Tagle replied they received information that Bedol already fled to the United States.

Tagle said the Comelec had filed graft and corruption charges against Bedol before the Office of the Ombudsman in January 2009 “for receiving sums of money from other persons related to the 2007 election.”

He added the Comelec’s Law Department is now tightening up an election offense case against Bedol for losing the election paraphernalia of Maguindanao.

Pangilinan told the poll officials that Bedol should have been detained to send a strong message that Comelec does not condone electoral fraud.

With Bedol still at large, Pangilinan warned that Comelec is trying to say that “election cheating will not be prosecuted and that it can happen again and again.”