TAWI-TAWI Judge Grace Tillah slammed a provincial board resolution declaring her “persona non grata” after she affirmed Benzar Tambut winner in the 2019 general elections following an electoral protest he filed against Simunul Mayor Wasilah Abdurahman.
Tillah,
of the Regional Trial Court Branch 26, also ordered Abdurahman to vacate her
post.
In
challenging Abdurahman, Tambut claimed massive fraud, anomalies and other irregularities
in the elections and the National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) was tapped to
conduct technical examination of election documents, including official ballots
which yielded to the discovery of the following – deceased persons were able to
cast their votes, illiterate voters were able to sign their names in the
ballots legibly and there were inconsistent thumb marks in the Book of Voters,
registration records and posting of the list of voters.
According to the court’s
decision, Tillah invalidated over 5,000 votes of Abdurahman due to massive
fraud. The Court also took reliance on the findings of the NBI during the
examination of pertinent election documents. The technical examination is one
legal process allowed by law to protect the sanctity of ballots and mandate of
the electorate. In this process, the NBI takes charge of the examination of
documents being the only agency possessing expertise on the matter.
In her six-page decision dated
October 5, Tillah invalidated Abdurahman’s proclamation on the ground of
“massive fraud, anomalies and other irregularities” in 23 clustered precincts.
“The proclamation of protestee
Wasilah Abdurahman is hereby held invalid, annulled and set aside on the ground
of massive fraud, anomalies and other electoral irregularities in the 23
clustered precincts. Protestant Benzar Tambut is hereby declared as the legally
and duly elected mayor in the municipality of Simunul being the winning
candidate with the highest number of plurality of valid votes cast,” Tillah
said.
“Protestee Wasilah Abdurahman
is hereby ordered to vacate her position and to cease and desist from further
discharging the duties and functions officially vested in the office of the
municipal mayor of Simunul which are now conferred in favor of protestant
Benzar Tambut, who is hereby ordered to act, perform and discharge the duties
and responsibilities and all incidents pertaining thereto,” she added.
Municipal authorities were
also ordered to enforce and implement and assist in the implementation of the
court’s order. Tambut and his supporters praised the decision of the court.
Persona non Grata
But the
Provincial Board presided by Vice Governor Michael Ahaja, in a resolution approved
by its members on October 16, declared Tillah “persona non grata” and saying
she was found to be remised of her duties as an officer of the court as can be
gleaned from her actuations – that Tillah seldom reports to her court of
assignment and she had not been conducting hearings regularly and due to her
irregular reporting for duty in the province it resulted to postponement of
hearings and delay in court proceedings.
The
resolution further claimed that Tillah seldom reports to her court of
assignment and detainees due for release were delayed release, and those who
wish to post bail to secure their provisional liberty cannot do so due to her
absence and unavailability causing undue delay in the dispensation of justice.
And because of the failure of the detainees to post bail the same contributed
to overcrowding in the correctional facilities of the province.
Politics
It said
Tillah was also seen together with the lawyer of the protesting party boarding
the same private plane from Zamboanga City to Tawi-Tawi and vice versa; and it
was observed that her Clerk or Court - under her direct supervision and
authority - personally used her influence (as an officer of the court) to
facilitate the entry of such lawyer and his client for the two to be able to do
away with the minimum health protocols in utter disregard of the quarantine
guidelines in the province.
The resolution said Tillah rendered an “unjust decision” on
the election protest case involving the municipal mayor in Simunul annulling 5,093
votes in 14 clustered precincts resulted in the disfranchisement of the registered
voters of their constitutional rights of suffrage and currently, creating tense
situation in the municipality.
“Now therefore, on motion of Sukarno U. Asri and seconded by
ABC President Hasanal Jeoffrey Sali and the majority resolved to declare Tillah
as persona non grata in Tawi-Tawi,” the resolution, signed by Provincial Board
Secretary Jerry Mercader, reads.
It also discourages hotels, resorts, restaurants and other
public places from accepting Tillah as guest in their establishments.
Among those who signed the resolution were Ahaja and Board
members Asri, Sali, Sabuddin Abdurahim, Renil Samnsuya, Mohammad Yusof Tidal, Abdulhamil
Ishmael, Ismael Masdal, and SK President Maharie Hairil and Sectoral
representatives Carlsum Jumaide, Amilbahar Jamalul and John Anthony Lim.
Response
Reacting to the resolution declaring her unwelcome in
Tawi-Tawi, Tillah said: “This
resolution is clear evidence that ignorance resonates in the provincial
administration. They who did not witness court proceedings arrogated unto
themselves judicial power and seeks ouster of a judge who only followed the
law. Lawlessness and ignorance should not characterize each Tawi-Tawian. This
is a disservice to the community.”
Tillah
further said that courts should be respected as a co-equal branch in a
Republican government and that executive and legislative branches should work
in their own jurisdictions.
“Only
courts have the power to try and decide electoral protests subject to appeals
process, including issuance of temporary restraining orders. Ours is a government
of laws and not of men. Just because a court decision is not to one’s liking is
not license for the other branches of government to cast aspersion, hence
eroding confidence on the judicial system otherwise people will just take the
law into their own hands. This does not augur well for a stable government and
a stable community because the three branches (Legislative, Executive and Judicial)
belong to one entity - the Republic of the Philippines,” she said.
Abdurahman
petitioned the Commission on Elections to issue a temporary restraining order that
would hold in abeyance Tillah’s order unseating her as mayor.
In
filing the petition, Abdurahman called on the court to stop her electoral opponent
Tambut from taking over. Abdurahman said this will also enable her camp to file
a petition for reconsideration.
The
poll body said Abdurahman filed a notice of appeal on October 15. The status of
the case (EAC No. 012-2020) said: “Notice dated October 29 inquiring the trial
court if the notice of appeal was given due course and that the records thereof
were transmitted to the Commission in accordance with Section 4, Rule 22 of the
1993 Comelec Rules of Procedure.” (Mindanao Examiner)
Like Us on Facebook: The Mindanao Examiner
Like Us on Facebook: The Zamboanga Post
Follow Us on Twitter: Mindanao Examine
Mirror Site: Mindanao Examiner Blog
Digital Archives: Mindanao Examiner Digital
Media Rates: Advertising Rates
No comments:
Post a Comment