Troop pullout not enough: Youth Partylist also wants ‘Garci General’ out
Members of Kabataan Partylist, students of the Polytechnic University of the Philippines and local residents camped out in front of the baranggay hall of Teresa in Sta. Mesa that has been occupied by soldiers for several months now in anticipation of the imminent of pullout of military troops in Metro Manila.
Kabataan Partylist President and First Nominee Raymond Palatino however said the order for troop pullout is not enough to dispel doubts over the military’s non-partisanship in this elections and dispel fears of massive electoral fraud.
“Military troops may have already been pulled out from Metro Manila communities before the elections but we still have the main fraud operator at the helm of the Armed Forces of the Philippines,” Palatino pointed out.
Palatino accused AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Hermogenes Esperon of masterminding the new plot to rig the results of the 2007 midterm elections dubbed as Oplan Mercury Rising.
He said massive electoral fraud has already begun to take place less than a week before election day with no less than the infamous “Garci general” serving as its main operator.
“History is repeating itself. The same personalities who figured prominently in the massive vote rigging in 2004 rigging are also the ones being accused of electioneering in this elections.”
“Unfortunately, it will be easier for election operators in the military to manipulate the outcome of this elections with Gen. Esperon at the helm of AFP,” he added.
Palatino said Gen. Esperon’s continued stay in power will continue to cast doubts over the neutrality of the military and the credibility and integrity of the upcoming polls.
“For as long as Gen. Esperon remains the front man and the main operator of the AFP, the youth and the public cannot hope for a truly clean and honest 2007 elections.”
Meanwhile, Palatino called on patriotic junior officers and rank and file soldiers to come out and speak up against military electioneering.
“We call on our fellow youth and patriotic officers to defend democracy and the integrity of the upcoming elections. Let us not allow these election operators at the chain of command to use the military establishment to manipulate the outcome of this elections.”
May 15th, 2007 at 9:40 pm
[…] Election Eye Opener Cebu Daily News columnist and editor Job Tabada mentioned KABATAAN party-list’s efforts against fraud and violence in his column today: I can’t blame the group’s PR officer Karlo Mikhail Mongaya for naming a top AFP official as the alleged fraud operator. The official was among those mentioned in the bugged “Hello Garci” conversations. The “official’s continued stay in power will continue to cast doubts over the neutrality of the military and the credibility and integrity of the upcoming polls,” says the group’s PR, quoting one of its nominees. […]