10-Postscript to Novaliches Cityhood ....
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Postscript to Novaliches City hood: Comelec urged to locate missing
101 plebiscite returns
By Severino C. Samonte
MANILA, Nov. 7 (PNA) -- What really happened to the missing or
unaccounted 101 returns in the plebiscite on the ratification of the
city hood of Novaliches as provided for under Republic Act 8535?
How did the Novalenos (residents of Novaliches) really express
their decision on the proposal to create their community as the
latest city of Metro Manila? Did they really waste the rare chance
given to them by Congress and the administrations of President Joseph
Ejercito Estrada and former President Fidel V. Ramos to again chart
their own destiny by having their own city government?
These are among the questions which remain uppermost in the minds
of the Novaliches voters, particularly the officers and members of
the Novaliches City hood Movement (NCM), two weeks after the
plebiscite was conducted by the Commission on Elections (Comelec)
last Oct. 23.
The Novalenos noted that in order for the Comelec and the Quezon
City officials to have an accurate data on the actual result of the
plebiscite and the percentage of voting, the missing or unaccounted
101 plebiscite returns must be properly located and counted.
Officers of the NCM said that with the more than 20,000 votes
unaccounted for, it is unfair for some people, including certain
members of the media, to conclude that even the voters of Novaliches
rejected the proposed city hood of Novaliches.
"The missing 101 plebiscite returns, estimated to contain at
least 20,200 votes (based on the 200 voters per election precinct).
may reflect positive votes that may be enough to overturn the
Comelec-announced slim margin of 4,793 negative votes in the
15 barangays proposed to compose Novaliches City," an official of
the NCM said.
As announced by the Comelec's Management Information System,
plebiscite returns from the 15 barangays of Novaliches showed that
there were 23,237 "yes" votes as against 28,030 "no" votes in
Novaliches, or a margin of 4,793 "no" votes.
Of the 15 barangays, six voted for the Novaliches city hood
ratification, together accounting for 12,948 "Yes" votes as against
9,826 "No" votes. These were Novaliches Proper, Nagkaisang Nayon, San
Bartolome, San Agustin, Kaligayahan, and Sta. Monica.
According to the Comelec tabulations, the following nine other
Novaliches barangays voted negatively: Bagbag, Capri, Greater Lagro,
Gulod, Pasong Putik Proper, North Fairview, Sauyo, Sta. Lucia, and
Talipapa.
In the entire Quezon City, the overall plebiscite result
proclaimed by Comelec Chairman Harriet O. Demetriou based on
tabulation of 5,956 plebiscite returns was 46,946 "yes" votes compared with
143,645 "no" votes.
In an official report to Demetriou last Oct. 24, or a day after
the conduct of the plebiscite, Atty. Juanito O. Icaro, chairman of
the Quezon City Plebiscite Board of Canvassers (PBC), said that they
were able to canvass only 5,956 plebiscite returns out of the 6,057
returns in the entire four districts of Quezon City.
In other words, 101 plebiscite returns have not been accounted
for and properly canvassed. An official of the NCM said that while
the missing plebiscite returns could not overturn the margin of the
negative votes throughout Quezon City, they should nevertheless be
included in the official count to reflect the true will of the people
of Novaliches in the Oct. 23 referendum.
Icaro said the "Election Officers of Quezon City informed the
PBC that the unaccounted 101 plebiscite returns were either deposited
in the ballot box or misdelivered in the Treasurer's Office or in the
retrieval area of the ERSD/MIS (Election Records and Statistics
Department/Management Information System) of the Comelec in the nine
distribution centers" throughout Quezon City.
As a policy of the Comelec, there should be at least 200 voters
per precinct in order not to heavily burden the workload of the Board
of Election Inspectors (BEI) during election, so in those 101 missing
or unaccounted plebiscite returns, there must be 20,200 registered
voters, that is by multiplying 101 by 200," Icaro said.
He added: "Granting that these 20,200 registered voters voted
for 'Yes,' the sum total would be 67,146 for 'Yes' votes. If we
subtract 67,146 'Yes' votes from 143,645 'No' votes, still the 'No'
votes will have a big margin of 76,499 (throughout Quezon City).
Confronting this situation, the Board deliberated and Dr. Aquilina S.
Rivas, the secretary/member of the Board, manifested that considering
the big margin obtained by the 'No' votes which will not be affected
by the unaccounted 101 plebiscite returns, she moved for the
proclamation of the results."
Icaro said the motion of Rivas was duly seconded by the vice
chairman of the Board, City Prosecutor Claro A. Arellano.
According to Icaro, he manifested that in order to have an
accurate data on the percentage of voting and on the actual number of
votes, "we have to account for the missing returns, but the
undersigned (Icaro) was overruled and considering that the Board
rules by majority, the Board decided to proceed with the proclamation
of the ,plebiscite results."
In reaction to Icaro's manifestation, the Novaliches City hood
Movement said that to determine how the Novalenos really voted in the
plebiscite, the missing 101 plebiscite returns must be properly
retrieved and counted by the concerned authorities, particularly the
Comelec. (PNA) /SS PNA 11071235