Its Boking Anew in Mabalacat

NEWS DATE: 2010-05-12

XEVERA - MABALACAT - The long queues did not prevail over the eagerness of voters to be part of this history making “first time”, yes 1st time automated election in the whole archipelago.

     At the start of the day, as early as 6 a.m., voters were in front of their clustered precincts although voting started only at 7 in the morning.  Others came passed 7 a.m. but the heavy turnouts of voters went on till in the afternoon which prompted the COMELEC to prolong the voting time until 7 p.m.

     The habit of doing things for the last minutes rush was practically not applicable this time, if I may say so, as the morning dawned bright and sunny, and then turning hot and scorching voters trooped early to the polls.

     In Mabalacat, the incumbent Mayor Marino “Boking” Morales is blessed with a new mandate as the mayor of this 1st class municipality vying to become the 2nd component city of Pampanga.  “If had not been to poor signal and transmission, he could have been proclaimed much earlier including the other winners of their respective position” says one the Municipal Board of Canvasser (MBOC) officials.

     Marino Morales got 35,080 votes; Joseph Policarpio’s votes totaled to 2,492; Marjorie Grace Morales-Sambo is second with 18,459 votes; Dr. Victor Tiglao is on 3rd spot with 11,038 votes.

     Meanwhile, incumbent Councilor Noelito Castro is elected as the Vice Mayor of this town garnering 30,767 votes; second is incumbent vice mayor Prospero Lagman with 16,833 votes and Anthony Dee on the 3rd spot with 16,897 votes.

     The magic 8 on councilors is composed of Cherry Manalo 34,742, Christian Halili 33,047, Elizabeth Pineda 30,447, Dr. Oscar Aurelio 28,880, Benjamin Jocson 26,509, Jerry Basilio 25,430, Froylan Galang 24,978, Rolando Peña 23,865.  Marcos “Jun” Castro landed on the 9th place with only 185 votes less than Peña while incumbent councilor Eduardo Sotto did not make it this time landing on the 10th spot with 20,613 votes.  In a municipality like Mabalacat, only 8 councilors shall seat in the municipal council.

     To the surprise of everyone more particularly those suggesting about doom-and-gloom prophets who said a lot of negative prediction about the first ever automated election were themselves wrong.  The election was relatively peaceful, no reported untoward incident except the common frustration of few voters that their polling precincts could not be located or the long line made one’s temper added to the already high humid.