Comelec ready to comply with PET order on Marcos poll protest against Robredo

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is ready to follow the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) on the poll protest filed by former senator Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. against Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo.
 (Photo: Philippine News Agency)

MANILA–The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is ready to follow the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) on the poll protest filed by former senator Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. against Vice President Maria Leonor Robredo.

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court, sitting as PET, has ordered the poll body to submit a report on the actual cost it may incur in using the election machines in the recount of votes for Marcos and Robredo from the May 2016 elections.

Comelec Spokesman James Jimenez assured that the Commission would comply with the ruling.

“That is simply the itemized cost of the election protest. If the Comelec is the proper party to issue that, I dont think there’s problem complying with it,” he said.

The Liberal Party’s vice presidential bet in the May 2016 polls won only by 263,473 votes, prompting the former senator to file an election protest before the PET.

Marcos accused Robredo of “massive electoral fraud, anomalies and irregularities.”

The election protest is asking for the manual count and judicial revision in 36,465 clustered precincts and annulment of election results in the remaining 2,756 clustered precincts.

The SC has set the preliminary conference on the recount of the votes on June 21.