Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, December 13) — Was Senator Imee Marcos behind the move to waive poll safeguards in the 2021 General Appropriations Bill? For vice presidential spokesperson Barry Gutierrez, it would be “ironic” for the Senate electoral reforms chair to do so, if such claims were true.
On Sunday’s episode of the radio show Biserbisyong Leni, Gutierrez referred to an Inquirer report which named Marcos as the one who inserted a provision authorizing the Commission on Elections to disregard requirements and safeguards provided under Section 12 of the Automated Election Law. The report cited various sources from the House of Representatives and Senate who tagged the lawmaker.
“Napaka-ironic kung totoong si Senator Imee ang nanguna dito, dahil unang-una siya iyong chair ng electoral reforms sa Senado (It would be really ironic if it was true that Senator Imee spearheaded this attempt, because she chairs the electoral reforms in the Senate),” Gutierrez said.
He also warned about “history repeating itself,” alluding to the allegations of electoral fraud when late dictator Ferdinand Marcos, her father, assumed the presidency.
“Kung totoong siya ito, parang may pag-uulit ng kasaysayan ‘diba. Mamaya ang habol na naman natin dito mauuwi tayo sa isang okasyon na magkakaroon ng ‘magic’ sa election (If it were really her, it would look like a repeat of our history. It could once again lead to another ‘magic’ in our election),” Gutierrez said.
The senator’s brother, defeated 2016 vice presidential bet Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., also has a pending electoral protest against Vice President Leni Robredo, who barely has two years left in her term.
Election lawyer Emil Marañon (@13thFool) previously bared on Twitter that “someone at the Senate” attempted to insert the controversial and “very dangerous” provision that could threaten the national elections in 2022. Senate finance committee chair Sonny Angara said last week that the provision was deleted in the spending bill that was ratified last Wednesday.
Senator Imee Marcos previously told CNN Philippines’ The Source that she also opposed the proposal which she labeled as a “dangerous precedent.” She noted that the government should open procurement to other poll technology provider companies aside from Smartmatic.
“I think that’s a very, very dangerous precedent, and we’re very, very scared of that sort of thing. Ayoko ‘nun (I don’t like it),” Marcos said in the interview last November 30.
Marcos has not talked about the matter anew as of this writing.
The 2021 GAB, which was ratified last Wednesday, becomes law once it is transmitted to President Rodrigo Duterte and signed before the year ends.
