Comelec ready to disqualify candidates who will be found responsible for massacre

The poll-related massacre that killed 46 people as of last count in Maguindanao prompted the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Tuesday to allow threatened aspirants for provincial posts to file their certificates of candidacy (COCs) with the provincial election supervisor of Sultan Kudarat, the neighboring province of Maguindanao.

Those who intend to seek the gubernatorial, vice gubernatorial, and congressional seats in Maguindanao may also file their COCs with the election offices of their home municipalties, instead of traveling to Shariff Aguak, the capital town of Maguindanao, where the Comelec's provincial office is located.

The victims of the Monday massacre were relatives and supporters of Ishmael Mangudadatu who were on their way to Shariff Aguak to file his COC for governor, assumed to be against a mayor-son of Maguindanao Gov. Andal Ampatuan Sr. Their bodies were dug out of shallow grave in Barangay Masalay in Datu Abdullah Sangki town.

"If you feel your life is threatened by filing your candidacy in one place, you can go to an alternative venue to file your candidacy--hopefully, to prevent the repeat of what happened," said Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez.

Jimenez said that the Monday incident is beyond Comelec jurisdiction since the Mangudadatu's party was not able to file his candidacy, but he acknowledged that Mangudadatu's intention to run for governor could be a reason for the killing of his relatives and supporters.

Hot spot
Comelec chair Jose Melo assured the public that if election-related violence in Maguindanao continues to escalate, the Comelec will be compelled to place the province under its control when election period comes. "The Comelec is not yet ready to take the province under Comelec control, but if the situation worsens, we will consider very seriously taking over," he said.

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting has called for Comelec control in the province. The group also wants the poll body to disarm the supporters of all political rivals in Maguindanao.

Melo said that the Comelec is ready to disqualify candidates who will be found responsible in the brutal killing.

As of now, Jimenez said, only candidates in Maguindanao can avail of cross-filing of candidacies. However, if violent incidents occur in other provinces, the Comelec might consider allowing cross-filing in those areas, too.

The Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, where Maguindanao is situated, is marked as a potential hot spot by the Comelec due to the reported incidents of election-related violence in past elections.

In September, Senator Richard Gordon and Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez filed bills seeking to conduct elections in the ARMM ahead of the rest of the country, so the authorities can properly monitor the exercise in the area. Melo favors holding the ARMM elections a month before the national elections, so all police forces in the country will concentrate in the region. (Newsbreak)