The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Second Division has junked the instant election protest filed by defeated gubernatorial candidate Ferjenel Biron against incumbent Governor Arthur Defensor Jr.
Under the decision, the COMELEC found Biron’s petition “insufficient in form and content, in accordance with Section 7, Rule 6 of Comelec Resolution No. 8804.”
“The allegations in the petition and in the appended evidence failed to convince us that an examination of the ballots and other election paraphernalia for purposes of a recount of votes is warranted,” the COMELEC said.
Signed by Presiding Commissioner Luie Tito F. Guia, the decision was promulgated last Jan. 14, 2020.
“It must be emphasized that the Commission aims not to prove or disprove the allegations of the protest through the appended evidence. It is through these proofs that that the Commission determines whetherthe allegations herein are specific enough to warrant the opening of ballots. They are then the tools of the Commission whether the allegations call for the recount of votes,” the COMELEC said.
Biron filed the protest at the COMELEC central office in Metro Manila on May 27 last year.
In his petition, Biron claimed that 99,899 votes were missing or unaccounted. He sought a manual recount of 2,184 clustered precincts all over the province.
“It is appalling…for a local electorate to yield such a significant discrepancy or missing / unaccounted votes, especially in voting for local positions, taking into account the fervent interest of the public in taking part in the elections of their local public officials.”
Defensor defeated Biron by 87,678 votes. He got a total of 479,081 votes while Biron earned 391,403 votes.IMT
