Vice-Presidential candidate Bongbong Marcos slams the Smartmatic for changing a script on the transparency server of the PPCRV as he delivers a privilege speech at the resumption of the Senate session on Monday, May 23, 2016聽RICHARD A. REYES
SEN. FERDINAND Marcos Jr. on Monday sought the immediate proclamation of presumptive President-elect Rodrigo Duterte, but he expressed reservations about the canvassing of the results of the vice presidential race in which he was trailing Camarines Sur Rep. Leni Robredo.
At the resumption of the Senate session, Marcos delivered a privilege speech in which he questioned the alteration in the script of the transparency server of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) by a Smartmatic executive.
He congratulated Duterte for being the 鈥渃lear and uncontested winner鈥� in the presidential race and proposed his immediate proclamation by the joint session of Congress, which convenes today as the national board of canvassers for the presidential and vice presidential contests.
鈥淗owever, I humbly but firmly reiterate my strong reservations [about] the canvassing of the results of the vice presidential election, on the basis of irregularities on the two fronts I mentioned,鈥� Marcos said.
The automated elections have now seen people waging battle on two fronts鈥攐n the ground and in the field of computer science and programming, he said.
搁贰础顿:听Bongbong renews 鈥榮trong reservations鈥� in VP count in speech
ARMM votes
Asked by reporters after his speech whether he wanted a stop to the canvassing of votes for the vice presidential race until the issues against Smartmatic were resolved, Marcos said there were 鈥減laces that needed to be checked before they be included in the canvassing.鈥�
These places included the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao where Marcos said his camp had received reports that people were not allowed to vote, that the board of election inspectors were turned away and that ballots were preshaded.
鈥淭here were also other places where all the vice presidential candidates except for Robredo got zero votes,鈥� Marcos said.
In certain areas, he noted, members of Iglesia ni Cristo (INC) voted for him for fear that they might be removed from the indigenous religious group. INC, which is known to vote as a bloc, supported Marcos鈥� vice presidential run.
Marcos said there was undervoting that affected 3 million votes.
Asked whether his call to exclude certain areas from the canvassing would delay the proclamation, he said he did not know the effect 鈥渂ut we have to clarify these issues first.鈥�
鈥楿nprecedented rate鈥�
In his speech, Marcos said his votes 鈥渟lowed down鈥� and the 鈥渧otes of another candidate鈥濃�攊n reference to Robredo
鈥斺�渁ccelerated鈥� after Smartmatic executive Marlon Garcia entered a new script in the PPCRV transparency server at about 7:30 p.m. of May 9.
He said the votes of Robredo accelerated 鈥渁t an unprecedented and linear rate of 45,000 votes for every additional 1 percent of votes counted.鈥�
When the PPCRV ended its unofficial quick count last week, Robredo was leading Marcos by more than 200,000 votes, with 96.14 percent of election returns counted.
Marcos said Garcia was the same person who was charged with electoral sabotage for making the same offense during the 2013 elections.
搁贰础顿:听Marcos insists on system audit
鈥楾rap doors鈥�
鈥淗ow sure are we that the computer change did not open windows of opportunity for 鈥榯rap doors,鈥� 鈥楾rojan horses,鈥� 鈥榳orms鈥� or 鈥榯ime bombs鈥� to enter the system?鈥� he said.
While Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chair Andres Bautista claimed that the programming change was a cosmetic one and did not alter votes, Marcos said the former did not show any proof.
The senator said he wrote the Comelec last week to allow his IT experts to examine its servers but as of Monday, the poll body had not replied.
After the speech, Sen. Bam Aquino, who happened to be Robredo鈥檚 campaign manager, stood up to question Marcos, asking whether the purpose of examining the Comelec servers was to find out if they were modified.
鈥楨ternal vigilance鈥�
Marcos said he wanted to 鈥渃heck whatever happened.鈥�
He also said that his inquiry was 鈥渘ot a fishing expedition鈥� and that during the canvassing he would present evidence of irregularities and discrepancies that were reported to his camp.
Aquino pointed out that numerous academicians had said that there were no irregularities while only two academicians defended Marcos, prompting the latter to counter whether this was a race on who had the most number of academicians.
Concluding his speech, Marcos said he was not speaking about himself or his candidacy but 鈥渁bout our nation and our country鈥檚 future.鈥�
鈥淭his is about eternal vigilance鈥� Fellow Filipinos, join me in calling for more eternal vigilance,鈥� Marcos said.