• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A drawing of lots will determine the winners of 137 tied votes in the recently concluded barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) in Negros Occidental.
Provincial Elections Supervisor Ian Lee Ananoria said that majority of the ties involve barangay and SK kagawad candidates who had the same number of votes for the seventh slot in their respective councils.
He added that the ties should be broken through the drawing of lots to determine the winner, and not through tossing of coins, which is illegal.
Bacolod City Election Officer Kathrina Trinio-Caña said there are 17 ties involving SK and barangay kagawads that will be broken through the drawing of lots at the Liga ng mga Barangay Hall on Nov. 3.
Of the 17 BSKE candidates issued with suspension of proclamation orders for premature campaigning, only one of them won, who is a candidate for barangay kagawad in Barangay Tabigue, E.B. Magalona town.
Ananoria, who withheld the candidate’s identity, said a proclamation can happen only if the petition against the candidate is dismissed.
While the 16 others lost in the elections, they are still not off the hook as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Task Force Kontra Epal could still rule that criminal cases should be filed against them before the Regional Trial Court for committing an election offense, Ananoria said.
If found guilty, they could be perpetually disqualified from running for public office, he added. | GB
