Loren's protest vs Noli junked due to lack of ‘factual’ basis

The Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET) on Friday threw out the election protest lodged by Senator Loren Legarda against Vice President Noli De Castro due to lack of “legal and factual" basis. In a 20-page resolution penned by Senior Justice Leonardo A. Quisumbing, the Supreme Court sitting as PET said: “The pilot-tested revision of ballots or re-tabulation of the certificates of canvass would not affect the winning margin of [De Castro] in the final canvass of the returns, in addition to the ground of abandonment or withdrawal by reason of [Legarda’s] candidacy for, election and assumption of the office Senator of the Philippines." According to PET, Legarda had effectively withdrawn her protest when she ran for the Senate contest in May last year. The Court said it adopted the recommendation of Hearing Commissioner and former Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chair retired Supreme Court Justice Bernardo P. Pardo that “the pilot-tested revision of ballots or re-tabulation of the certificates of canvass would not affect the winning margin of the protestee in the final canvass of the returns, in addition to the ground of abandonment or withdrawal by reason of protestant’s candidacy for, election and assumption of the office Senator of the Philippines." The second aspect of the petition concerning the revision of ballots in 124,404 precincts had been already dismissed on June 5, 2007 pursuant to Rule 33 of the PET for Legarda’s failure to deposit the P3.9 million to continue the revision of ballots despite extension. “The entire Protest is now deemed dismissed and terminated," the PET said. The PET said that Legarda “had not adequately and convincingly rebutted the presumption that as public documents, the Congress-retrieved [election return] ER copies, used for the proclamation of [De Castro] by the [National Board of Canvassers], are authentic and duly executed in the regular course of official business." “This is a triumph of truth – the truth that I won fair and square," De Castro said in reaction to the PET decision. “I thank the Supreme Court for echoing the true voice of the people." De Castro said from the very beginning he was confident he received the overwhelming mandate of the people as vice president. - GMANews.TV