Village execs meddling in Butuan voters’ list-up

BUTUAN CITY, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) officer here yesterday decried the alleged meddling of a number of village officials and parents of potential Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) candidates in the voters’ registration which ends today.

Lawyer Ernie Palanan, city election officer, said the intervention of these people has aggravated the problem caused by long lines of voters wanting to be registered since day one of the list-up.

“They are bragging about their position and their connections as they tell me to grant their requests. It’s insulting,” Palanan told The STAR.

He said the parents of two SK candidates made a scene at the poll office after their requests were not granted.

He cited an incident involving a village chairman who arrived at the Comelec office with three teenagers and requested that they be registered.

Palanan said the barangay chief said two of the three were his nephews, and that they were staying in his house.

But when he interviewed the three, Palanan found out that one of them did not even know the village chief’s name or his wife’s.

He said the barangay head was the one answering the questions directed at the teenagers, so he asked him to step out of the Comelec office.

Palanan said he documented everything that has happened since the first day of the registration.

Aside from the meddling and hauling of registrants, he said flying voters have been a major complaint during the registration period. 

He cited a dispute involving the camps of an incumbent SK head and a potential opponent who are accusing each other of hauling flying voters.

The latter camp wanted some education officials investigated for allegedly issuing school records to flying voters reportedly brought by the former.

Palanan said the lines of registrants have remained long even if the list-up ends today.