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E-mailAccording to Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento, a team led by Comelec-National Capital Region director Jubil Surmieda tried to initiate the retrieval of the ballot boxes but to no avail.
“I was informed by Surmieda that they were not able to enter the place. Jeepneys and buses were used to block the entrance. One attempted to sneak in through the side (door) but was stopped,” Sarmiento said in a Philippine Star report.
In a February 15 resolution, the Comelec First Division ordered the retrieval of the 43 ballot boxes from the Taguig City Hall, with the recount of ballots scheduled for February 20-23. The resolution came following an electoral protest filed by mayoralty candidate and former Supreme Court Associate Justice Dante Tiñga, who lost to Cayetano in the 2010 elections by a mere 2,420 votes.
The Philippine Daily Inquirer alsoreported that Cayetano filed an Extremely Urgent Motion to demand the inventory and technical examination of the Compact Flash (CF) cards used in the counting machines during the 2010 elections.
The motion also asks the poll body to clarify if the ballot boxes that will be retrived will be used for recount or revision, the Manila Bulletin reported.
Reacting to the reported failed retrieval of the ballot boxes, Cayetano's spokesperson Darwin Icay said that no one from Comelec went to City Hall yesterday. He added that the barricades were put up after receiving information that Tiñga's supporters will create a ruckus during the retrieval.
The Daily Tribune reported that Cayetano and her supporters have raised doubts as to the credibility of Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes following the speedy decision totransfer the ballot boxes.
Icay was also quoted in the article questioning the security of the Comelec warehouse where the ballot boxes are to be transferred.
Prior to the recent resolution, Comelec had already ordered the recount and retrieval of the ballot boxes at least three times. Cayetano's supporters, however, have always succeeded in preventing Comelec officials from entering the city hall.
Cayetano, the wife of Senator Alan Peter Cayetano, has also filed several motions and appeals before the Comelec to postpone the recount
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