Palawan group hits recall petition vs Mitra

MANILA, Philippines - A civil society group in Palawan yesterday denounced the recall petition against Gov. Abraham Mitra, alleging that some signatories were misled into seeking his ouster.

In a statement, Palaweños for Good Governance spokesman Bert Gabo said some of the signatories were made to believe that they were signing petitions to seek justice for slain broadcaster Dr. Gerry Ortega and to oppose mining in the province.

“The hastiness in the deliberation of the recall bid is highly suspect. It was also lacking in judiciousness as Gov. Mitra was denied due process when Comelec mind-bogglingly issued a resolution in favor of the recall bid without even furnishing him a copy of the petition and giving him a chance to oppose the petition,” Gabo said.

The statement was made on the heels of a Commission on Elections (Comelec) decision denying Mitra’s motion for the agency to reconsider its earlier ruling granting the recall petition.

The recall petition was filed by the group Kilusang Love Malampaya which accused Mitra of compromising Palawan’s interest when he accepted Malacañang’s offer of a smaller share in the royalties paid by the Malampaya consortium.– With Paolo Romero