LINTANG Bedol, the provincial election
supervisor, believed to be instrumental in the 12-0 victory in
Maguindanao of the Team Unity senatorial ticket in the 2007
elections, has fled to the United States after the Commission on
Elections failed to file election charges against him.
Poll Commissioner Lucenito Tagle, during
yesterday’s confirmation hearing of the Commission on
Appointments, admitted the poll body committed neglect in filing
charges.
Tagle said they will initiate the filing of
election charges against Bedol before the Manila regional trial
court.
"We heard he is in the States, that’s why we
communicated with people there. But up to now we cannot locate
him, sad to say," Tagle said.
"We will try to communicate with consular
offices abroad. We will seek help from our people abroad," Tagle
said.
Comelec Commissioner Armando Velasco told CA
members that he examined Bedol’s record and found there were no
criminal charges initiated against him.
Sen. Francis Pangilinan called on poll
officials to immediately file necessary charges against Bedol
"or resign for gross negligence."
"This is ridiculous. The matter of
prosecuting Bedol is so basic yet they have missed it all these
years," Pangilinan said.
The Comelec en banc on Aug. 7, 2007 ordered
Bedol jailed for six months and fined him P1,000 for indirect
contempt for snubbing summons and infidelity in the custody of
public documents over the missing municipal certificates of
canvass.
It, however, failed to find evidence that he
committed an election offense and allowed Bedol to post bail of
P15,000 the following day.
Bedol filed a motion for reconsideration but
it was denied by the Comelec.
The Comelec ordered that he be re-arrested
October 2007 upon learning that the Supreme Court had not issued
a temporary restraining order against his arrest.
Pangilinan said: "The message being sent here
is that election cheating will not be prosecuted and that it can
happen again and again."
"Chairman (Jose) Melo has a lot of explaining
to do and he better have good reasons for this terrible delay.
It is totally unacceptable," he said.
