Electoral sabotage charges may be filed against those behind the pre-shading of ballots in Maluso, Basilan, where over 16,000 official ballots have been compromised.
“That is an election offense. At the same time, we will look into the possibility of it being an electoral sabotage case as well. Cases will definitely come… we will not forgive you regardless of your position. We are not talking about who these people are. What’s important is someone will be held accountable,” Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said in an interview at the start of Monday’s parliamentary elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
Reports said some 16,653 official ballots in 36 polling precincts in the town were pre-shaded.
At the same time, Garcia said they will reprint the same number of ballots at the National Printing Office, which will be flown to Zamboanga City and then to Basilan.
“We have an existing protocol for such a scenario. It is good that it was immediately reported to us,” he added.
Garcia also noted that they have already instructed their field personnel to inform the members of the Electoral Boards (EBs) and the voters regarding the delay.
Earlier, the Comelec declared the town of Maluso under its control due to the presence of pre-shaded ballots.
An electoral sabotage case is considered as a special election offense, carrying a penalty of life imprisonment. It is defined as any form of tampering with votes, where the total votes involved exceed 10,000 votes.
On the other hand, an election offense carries the penalty of one to six years imprisonment, removal of the right to vote and disqualification from holding public office. (PNA)