By Jennifer P. Rendon
A 56-year-old jobless man was the first person arrested for alleged vote buying in Western Visayas.
Alias Romeo, a resident of Barangay Logohon, Madalag, Aklan, was apprehended at a Comelec-PNP-Army checkpoint in Barangay Poblacion, Madalag at 9:15 a.m. on May 11.
Police said Romeo hesitated when he saw uniformed personnel at the checkpoint and was flagged down for inspection.
Officers noticed a bulge at the back of his waist and asked what it was.
Romeo nervously replied that it was just a rolled piece of paper.
He was told to take it out and showed a sando bag containing several envelopes.
Captain Jayson Mausig, Madalag police chief, said he used a flashlight to examine the envelopes and confirmed they contained paper bills.
Police recovered PHP100 bills, campaign materials, 32 sample ballots, and a list of coordinator leaders.
When asked about another bulge in his pants pocket, Romeo claimed it was just more envelopes.
Upon inspection, the envelopes contained four PHP500 bills and thirty-six PHP100 bills.
Authorities recovered a total of PHP21,900 in cash from the suspect.
Lt. Col. Arnel Solis, spokesperson for Police Regional Office 6, confirmed it was the region’s first documented case of presumed vote buying.
Meanwhile, the Iloilo Police Provincial Office said it is investigating another alleged vote-buying incident on the morning of May 9 in Dueñas town.
IPPO has formed a team to conduct a thorough probe into the allegation.
According to reports, Dueñas police responded to the incident at 9:30 a.m. in Barangay Pandan.
A confrontation reportedly occurred between mayoralty candidate Mamerto Pelopero III and vice mayoral bet Atty. Kaiser Cordero, and the group of re-electionist Vice Mayor Aimee Lamasan, an ally of Mayor Robert Pama.
Police led by Captain John Francis Layog and the Regional Mobile Force Battalion 6 responded to the scene.
Pelopero alleged that Pama’s group was distributing cash for votes at the residence of a former Sangguniang Bayan member during a wedding anniversary celebration.
However, Pelopero’s group failed to present solid evidence when questioned by police.
They identified individuals whom they claimed had witnessed the alleged distribution of cash.
Layog advised them to proceed to the Dueñas police station to formally present their evidence and witnesses for further investigation and possible charges.
No arrests were made due to lack of concrete proof at the time.
