Manipulating voters politicians now using "Minus-Plus" scheme

BAYBAY CITY, Philippines  – Politicians in the 5th district of Leyte are now exerting extra effort to stop what they called “minus-plus” scheme hatched allegedly by a dominant party leader to manipulate voters and ensure victory in the 2013 elections.

The scheme runs like this: Voters, known supporters of a politician in Baybay, would be paid by the opponent to transfer registration in Hilongos so that they could no longer vote for their candidate and vote instead to a specific candidate in Hilongos allied to this opponent.

This means that votes for the Baybay candidate will be reduced and added to the one in Hilongos. Other towns in the district will also be infiltrated by “transferees” from Baybay, as orchestrated by this politician in the city.

Ramon Cabrera, of Tingog Leytenhon party and a candidate for councilor in Hilongos town, told The Freeman that he discovered the plan when he unintentionally talked to a man who was about to register as voter in Hilongos. 

The man, who requested anonymity, told Cabrera that aides of a politician in Baybay City have been continuously recruiting residents, of voting age, to register as voters in other towns in the district, especially in Hilongos where there is a larger voting population.

To make the voter’s transfer legal, or so it would seem to be, barangay chairpersons of the “recipient” towns will also be paid with the instructions to issue certificates of residency to the “instant transferees” to be presented to Comelec.

Cabrera told The Freeman that if left unchecked, a candidate in Baybay will lose considerable votes from her supporters who will be voting instead for candidates in Hilongos.

Candidates in this town will also have lesser votes because the “transferred voters” from Baybay will cast their votes in favor of their opponents.

The number of voters involved here are by the thousands, based on the edge of a candidate over another as shown in a survey conducted by the manipulator. For example, if a candidate has a five percent edge over the other, at least ten percent of voters will be moved to other towns, considerably eliminating the advantage.

“The sad thing is that the 2013 elections is already won even if the people have not voted yet. The manipulation of voters is taking place right in the registration,” said Cabrera.

“I hope the Comelec, the DILG and other related agencies will look into these matters seriously specially that the ongoing registration will soon end, or else the coming election will never be fair,” he said. (FREEMAN)