For the first time last Tuesday December 3, 2008, the city mayor Agustin R. Perdices took the witness stand as complainant-witness int he sala of Judge Antonio Estoconing.
Perdices testified to prove how he was deeply hurt about an article published in the Negros Chronicle, written by columnist Dindo P. Generoso on May 20, 2007, after the May 14, 2007 elections.
Perdices has accused Generoso of abusing his rights when he wrote the hurtful article. He accused Generoso of defamation. He is demanding that Generoso pay him P300,000 pesos in damages.
In his testimony, Perdices said Generoso caused him damage when Generoso, in his column, attributed the loss of Atty. Arturo Umbac in the 2007 mayoral elections to a criminal conspiracy and felonious act of electoral fraud involving Perdices.
Perdices also complained that Generoso had accused him (Perdices) of robbery, by robbing Atty. Umbac of his victory in the elections.
It was a rare privilege to "baptize" Perdices as he debuted on cross-examination.
I am not sure if he enjoyed it as I did. It was fun.
Perdices struggled particularly when he was asked to point out where in the article he based his charges, so as to enable him to extract P300,000 from Dindo Generoso.
He engaged in round-about responses. When pressed, his answer was "You have to read the whole article," or "It is implied."
In other words, one has to resort to imaginations to see the complained defamation.
That is the theory according to Perdices.
He miserably failed to point out in court the defamatory language and words he was accusing Dindo Generos of having written.
The defense here is quite simple: Res Ipsa Loquitor.
The article will speak for itself.
Just to recall, here again is that very article itself.
Kindly read and see if you can find the defamatory and abusive imputations that Perdices is accusing Dindo Generoso of.
"When trends are established in cavassing election returns, it is unlikely that it will change much. It didn't change much for the counsilors as much as it did not for the vice-mayoraltyrace TO THE VERY END. BUT IT DID FOR THE MAYORALTY RESULTS! From LESS THAN ONE HUNDRED VOTES AHEAD, the incumbent's lead streatche dto more than FOUR THOUSAND VOTES AFTER THE COUNTING WAS ILLEGALLY STOPPED FOR AT LEAST TWELVE HOURS WITH A QUICK BROWNOUT TO BOOT.
As if it had no connection to how the people voted for councilors and vice-mayor, it assumed a life of its own. Sec. 231 of the Comelec's RULES OF CANVASSING VOTES is very SPECIFIC in stating "It shall meet CONSINTUOUSLY...until THE CANVASS IS COMPLETE..." offering no allowable excuse why it should be stopped other than running out of votes to be canvassed.
Elections are not ordinary democratic exercises and stopping the canvassing "BECAUSE THE CANVASSERS ARE TIRED..." constitutes no less than tht echoking of democracy and the violation of the sacred right to vote. It needs to be addressed and the perpetrators prosecuted for this criminal offense of desecrating the people's democratic voice and the mockeryh of the electoral process.
The COLLECTIVE GUILT rests on those cnavassers who "became tired..." and the COMELEC officer who allowed the stopping of the canvassing, specifically Sec. 231. Under this rule CANVASSING SHOULD NEVER BE STOPPED! If canvassers get tired, they should be replaced.
"Until this can be sufficiently EXPLAINED, this columnists believes, that Mr. Arturo Umbac has been ROBBED of his apparent road victory in the last elections. The people's VOICE has been clear fromt eh very start of the canvassing; establishing a likely loss of hte incumbent mayhor. it didn't change much for the councilors and the Vice-mayor; IT DID ONLY FOR THE MAYORALTY RESULTS.
Strange huh? It might be good to hear from the father and son team, Lagahit & Lagahit, mayor's sidekick and city legal officer on how this can possibly happen! Will the people of Dumaguete have the political will to correct this apparent choking of democratic rights? Mr. Umbac's resigning not to fight for his rights puts this issue on the people's court. After all it was the people's voice which was baltantly stifled. We can only have what we deserve, right? Have a nice day!"
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