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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider Poll watchdog group wary of Comelec 'dominated' by Duterte appointees

Poll watchdog group wary of Comelec 'dominated' by Duterte appointees

Published Sep 22, 2020 02:58 pm

The nomination of Michael Peloton as commissioner of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) drew concern from poll watchdog group Kontra Daya.

Kontra Daya convenor Danilo Arao is particularly worried over his links with the Duterte administration.

"It cannot be denied that he is based in Davao and has served the Duterte administration, the most recent of which was as Board of Directors member of the Philippine Reclamation Authority," he said in an interview Tuesday.

"His appointment at Comelec means that (Rowena) Guanzon is the remaining Commissioner appointed by then President (Benigno) Aquino," added Arao.

Commissioner-nominee Peloton has served as a Board Member in the Board of Directors and Management of the Philippine Reclamation Authority in 2018, and was a Technical Assistant in the Presidential Management Staff of the Office of the President in 2017.

And with Commissioners Guanzon, Antonio Kho and Chairman Sheriff Abas set to retire on February 2, 2022, he said, this means that the May, 2022 polls will be supervised by a Comelec whose seven commissioners are all Duterte appointees.

"It is not just him but the independence of the commission that is being questioned. The credibility of the 2022 elections is in peril," said Arao.

"With the retirement of Guanzon, along with two others, it will be practically a Duterte-controlled Comelec," he added.

"Theoretically there should be nothing wrong if those assigned have a track record of independence especially when it comes to dealing with the Duterte administration. But the situation right now is that the likes of Peloton who had past dealings with the government get appointed," Arao said.

He also said that the claim of Comelec that Peloton's IT background is an asset remains to be seen.

"It remains to be seen if his 'expertise' will be put to good use. Comelec has a credibility issue right now and until it gets rid of Smartmatic, its credibility will be questioned all the more. Our challenge to the new Commissioner is to be decisive and get rid of Smartmatic once and for all," said Arao.

The poll body announced the nomination of Peloton as commissioner Monday.

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