By Martin Sadongdong
A few minutes away from the closing of the voting period, senatorial aspirant Glenn Chong barged in at the headquarters of the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) in Pasay City to report alleged irregularities in the midterm polls late Monday afternoon.
Chong arrived at the NBOC headquarters around 5:30 p.m. and held a closed-door meeting with Commission on Elections (Comelec) spokesperson James Jimenez just as the Commission en banc adjourned its canvassing session.
Chong claimed that he received reports from Mata sa Balota, a group of his supporters, that he allegedly lost some votes in Cagayan Province, Biliran, Manila, Batangas, Iloilo and Cagayan de Oro City.
"What we found out is that may mga complainants na botante na nagsabing hindi lumalabas ang pangalan ko sa resibo even if I was voted," Chong told reporters.
In Cagayan, a group of voters allegedly voted for him but what appeared at their receipts was the name of another senatorial candidate, Marcelino Arias, of the Labor Party Philippines.
"Sa Biliran naman, ang binoto niya dalawa, si Glenn Chong at si Mar Roxas, ang lumabas sa resibo si Mar Roxas lang. Wala ang pangalan ko sa resibo," he said.
Another case in Biliran was cited by Chong when a voter supposedly voted for him but the name that was reflected in the receipt was that of Neri Colmenares.
In Batangas, the case was that some voters allegedly voted for him only to find out that it was the name of Gary Alejano that was in the receipt.
"Ang tanong ko sa Comelec, bakit nawawala ang aking boto sa resibo?" Chong asked.
Chong raises suspicion on the cases of malfunctioning vote-counting machines (VCMs) which he said should not happen since it had already passed two tests from the Comelec, including the final testing and sealing (FTS) procedures.
According to the Comelec, at least 1,000 VCMs have already malfunctioned nationwide during the polls.
However, Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said the issue on malfunctioning VCMs was immediately resolved since they have a reserved almost 10,000 vote-counting machines.
According to Chong, Jimenez advised him to file a formal complaint before the Comelec so that it will be addressed after the elections.
"I will draft my formal complaint tonight," he said.