The Mountain Province vote

 BEHIND THE SCENES

Alfred P. Dizon

BAGUIO CITY -- Is there such a monster as a “Mountain Province vote” and how potent is it? This may be the question hounding candidates vying for public office in this so-called city of pines.

There is a perception that voters who trace their lineage from Mountain Province vote as one. Considering their rising number, this is a matter which some politicians shrugged off in the past but couldn’t ignore  nowadays.

Observers say mayor Mauricio G. Domogan held office as councilor, vice mayor, mayor, congressman, then back as mayor due largely to support of Mountain Province folks. 

At this time, one observation is that voters from Mountain Province who have established residence in this summer capital are now divided between Rep. Bernardo Vergara and Councilor Nick Aliping. The latter comes from Bauko, Mountain Province although pundits say the Vergara- Domogan tandem is hard to crack.

Another, they say, is that their votes may go either way for Vergara, Aliping Mark Go of the Liberal Party and Johnny-come-lately Mike Arviso who styles himself as an environmentalist.  

Their reasoning is that MP natives have come of age and are now voting for the candidate they see as most competent and less tarnished – and not due to their being kailian.

Whatever, no congressional candidate is sure of winning yet in the city. So to those who are running for the top post, it wouldn’t hurt to woo MP voters, as it is perceived their families vote as one. Many folks from Mountain

Province have migrated to Baguio in search of greener pastures.  

It is a different matter for the mayoral race wherein Mayor Mauricio Domogan is still considered the man to beat

although lawyer Jose Molintas of the Liberal Party is P-Noy’s bet.

This, and also considering that Jomol’s niece, the daughter of former Benguet Gov. Rocky Molintas and Cordillera Region Tourism director Pura Molintas,  married a son of former Mankayan Commission on Elections officer, the late Francis Likigan who traces his roots from the towns of Besao and Sagada in Mountain Province.   

According to some pundits, MP folks would still go for Domogan as he had shown his being a kailian and had been very approachable when they saw him for their concerns. Domogan traces his roots from Besao.

“Jomol” however, observers say, is projecting himself as belonging to the breed of new politicians of the P-Noy genre and so, the poll outcome is still a guessing game.

            

 MP folks are considered very clannish, even in this technological age, but observers say they have independent minds now and are not swayed easily nowadays by their elders.

            So to those running for elective posts in Baguio, it wouldn’t hurt if you tell voters that you trace your lineage from Mountain Province, even if it is in the 69th degree.

It is no wonder if a late councilor, who now has a son in the city council, always won elections. He always told people he had Sagada blood and therefore was also from Mountain Province owing to his family name. Sources however said he came from a province south of Manila which bred a lot of movie stars and where political aspirants use anting-anting to win.      

            Anyway, the piece of advice is also for candidates in adjacent La Trinidad, Benguet. There are also a lot of migrants from Mountain Province in the capital town. Don’t wonder if many councilors in the municipality come from Mountain Province. So go figure. Nu mamati kayo a.

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            In the home front in Mountain Province, three candidates are running for Congress – former Sabangan town mayor Jupiter “Jup” Dominguez, incumbent Rep. Maximo Dalog and former Department of Public Works and Highways undersecretary Roy Manao.

            It is a toss-up, considering different factors. And voters usually vote on account of family, tribal or community ties. For one, Both Dominguez and Dalog come from SaBaTa (Sabangan, Bauko, Tadian) towns of western Mountain Province where there are solid blocks of voters.

Dalog’s wife Cecilia whose maiden name is Yawan is from Bontoc. Manao is from eastern Mountain Province but grew up in Bontoc.

Meanwhile, “Jup” is a nephew of the late Rep. Victor Dominguez who had been the undisputed king of Mountain Province politics for many decades. It is a matter of fact that the Dominguezes still have a lot of mass supporters.

For the gubernatorial race, running for the post are incumbent Gov. Leonard Mayaen, engineer Arnold Pilando (brother of the late Rep. Roy Pilando) and Harry Dominguez who is also related to Jupiter.

The Pilandos have also been one of the prominent political families in the province. It is a merry mix and like we said, considering all factors, anything goes until the ballots are counted.

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By the way, when you cast your ballot, make sure your votes won’t be spoiled. 

The Commission on Elections-Cordillera has advised voters not to “over-vote” when they fill up their ballots come election day on May 13. 

Comelec regional director Jose Nick A. Mendros said for the senatorial slate, voters must at most shade 12 among the list of 32 candidates. Over-voting means a voter shaded more candidates than the number of candidates one is allowed to vote for  a particular office. 

Over-voting occurs when a voter shades 13 or more candidates for senator on the official ballot instead of just 12 or less, and this will invalidate the ballot, Mendros said. 

The Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machine, he said, will not read more than what is asked, but it will read “under-voting” or less of what is being asked.

Voters should read carefully and understand instructions printed on the top part of the ballot. Voters should have a “codigo” or a list of candidates and bring it with them to the poll center so voting would be easier and take less time.

Mendros said in Baguio City, voters will choose 12 councilors while in Tabuk City the electorate will select 10 councilors. Eight councilors will be voted upon for the rest of municipalities in the Cordillera.

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Meanwhile, candidates without opponents should not be complacent. They must vote for themselves or ensure they get voted upon by their supporters. 

Unopposed candidates running for the May 13 elections need a least one vote to be declared winner, Mendros said. “Even though they are unopposed candidates, the Comelec still needs to have a record of votes for these unchallenged candidates.” 

In the automated election, Mendros said they have to wait for data from at least one precinct to be transmitted before it could announce an unchallenged candidate a winner. 

In the Cordillera, most unopposed candidates are running for mayor. In Apayao province, mayoralty candidates running without rivals are  incumbent Mayor Elias Bulut Sr. of Calanasan, mayors Leonardo Dangoy of Conner, Efren de San Jose of Flora, Joseph Amid of Kabugao, Betty Verzola of Luna, and Rolly Guiang of Sta. Marcela. 

In Benguet, there are seven incumbent mayors running for reelection who are unopposed. They are Bokod mayor Mauricio Macay, Kabayan mayor Faustino Aquisan, Kibungan mayor Benito Siadto, Sablan mayor Arthur Baldo, and Tublay mayor Ruben Paoad. 

Abra has six unopposed mayoral candidates - Victorino Baroña of Bucay, Salma Padilla of Daguioman, Marco Bautista of San Juan, Ernesto Pacsa of San Isidro, Guilbert Ballngan of Tubo and Marjorie Lagen of Villaviciosa.