MANILA TIMES: LIKE MacARTHUR, MIGZ SHALL RETURN
MANILA, AUGUST 4, 2011 (MANILA TIMES) by Jimmy Pilapil -SEN. Juan Miguel Zubiri's resignation was not decided only recently. In fact, he said that it dated back to his "proclamation two months after the May 2007 senatorial elections (being) assailed through the filing of an election protest before the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET)."
The protest stemmed from alleged fraud and irregularities in some areas covered by the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.
"It was his right to do so just as the law and the rules on elections gave me all the right to file a counter-protest in areas where I also believed I was also a victim of similar circumstances, which also affected the actual number of votes I obtained in the said elections," Zubiri said on Wednesday, obvously referring to Aquilino "Koko" Pimentel 3rd, who landed in 13th place in the 2007 race for senators.
Pimentel is a son of former Sen. Aquilino "Nene" Pimentel Jr.
In the 2007 race, Pimentel was some 10,987,347 votes behind Zubiri, who made it to the "Magic 12" with 11,005,866 votes.
Zubiri's honor was assailed recently by Zaldy Ampatuan, a suspect in the Maguindanao massacre case.
Ampatuan, also the suspended governor of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao, claimed that during the 2007 polls, the camp of President Gloria Arroyo ordered that votes for three senatorial candidates of the opposition in Maguindanao be transferred to Zubiri.
Then Lintang Bedol, the long-missing former election supervisor of Maguindanao, surfaced and corroborated the allegations of Ampatuan.
"A number of highly suspect personalities suddenly cropped up recently, claiming that they were allegedly witnesses to the alleged fraud and irregularities during the 2007 elections," Zubiri said.
"Armed merely with their vocal chords and without any supporting documents to prove their allegations, these alleged witnesses are now shouting out loud and, as if with full orchestration, that my election was marred with irregularities," he added.
Zubiri said that Pimentel took advantage of the situation and mobilized his supporters to make noise and ask for his resignation. 'My political detractors began calling me ugly names and dragging the name of my family in entirety."
He added that he was a victim of trial by publicity and it would be better, Zubiri said, if the case was resolved by the SET, where Pimentel can properly ventilate his case.
"I did not cheat nor ask anyone to cheat for me and my family. We could never tolerate any form of electoral fraud," he added.
"I am resigning because of these unfounded accusations against me and these issues have systematically divided our nation and have cast doubts in our electoral system that have affected not only myself, this institution (Senate) but the public as well," Zubiri told his fellow senators during Wednesday's plenary.
"No amount of power, position or wealth is worth sacrificing one's honor and integrity," he said. "I have seen and felt the suffering of my family and from the burrows of my conscience, I could not allow this to happen, let alone be tolerated."
According to Zubiri, his family does not deserve to suffer the consequences of his being a senator. He sent a stern message to his detractors, including Pimentel, by paraphrasing a quote from Gen. Douglas MacArthur who said, "I am not actually retreating; I am merely advancing to another direction."
Koko could secure Zubiri's Senate seat * Print * Email: * inShare Published : Thursday, August 04, 2011 00:00 Article Views : 183 Written by : By Rommel C. Lontayao, MANILA TIMES Reporter
AQUILINO "Koko" Pimentel 3rd, a former candidate for senator, could replace Sen. Juan Miguel Zubiri in the Senate, Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said. Zubiri resigned on Wednesday, citing what he described as baseless allegations saying that he had won his Senate seat through fraud in the 2007 elections.
"Sen. Zubiri will be asking the Senate Electoral Tribunal (SET) to resolve the case on the electoral protest by Koko. It will soon be submitted for decision," Brillantes, who served as Pimentel's election lawyer during the 2007 polls, said also on Wednesday.
The Comelec chief said that there would be special elections to fill a vacancy in the Senate resulting from Zubiri's resignation and because there is a pending protest from Pimentel against Zubiri.
Zubiri placed 12th in the 2007 vote to join the winners' circle and Pimentel landed 13th in the race that was said to be marred by massive fraud.
Brillantes said that should Zubiri fail to amass 200,000 votes more than Pimentel, then Pimentel could take his seat in the Senate after the SET rules on the protest.
Then-administration candidate Zubiri took the last available Senate post after getting 11, 005,866 votes in the elections while opposition bet Pimentel got 10,987,347 votes.
Pimentel had been questioning the election results in some areas in southern Mindanao, where administration candidates scored a landslide.
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