Top officers get the chop for speaking out on poll scandal
A general and a colonel who accused President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo of cheating in last year's elections have been sacked and ordered to undergo court martial.
Brigadier-General Francisco Gudani was fired as assistant superintendent of the Philippine Military Academy for defying Mrs Arroyo's orders not to testify before the Senate yesterday.
In his sworn testimony, General Gudani disclosed how, during last year's counting of votes for the presidential elections, he was summarily relieved of his command of an elite marine brigade in Lanao, southern Philippines, and ordered back to Manila.
'I was able to resolve the enigma as to why I was instructed to stay for one week and play golf at a time when all armed forces unit commanders were on red alert,' he said.
He said a top military official told him afterwards that election commissioner Virgilio Garcillano 'asked the provincial election supervisor of Lanao del Sur, Rey Sumalipao, if he could rig the election and Mr Sumalipao replied he could not rig the election with General Gudani around'.
Colonel Alexander Balutan, also sacked yesterday from his post as assistant commandant of the academy, testified that after General Gudani was replaced last year, he [Colonel Balutan] was ordered 'to support the administration by relaxing the security in the canvassing [of votes] in the area'.
Colonel Balutan served as a battalion commander under General Gudani.
Their narratives tied in with the controversial wiretapped conversations where President Arroyo was overheard telling election Mr Garcillano to assure her win by over a million votes.
In one conversation dated May 29, Mr Garcillano was heard to assure her that the votes being tallied from Lanao would ensure this margin of victory.
In another conversation dated May 28, Mr Garcillano was heard telling Mrs Arroyo that in Lanao: 'I worked with General [Hermogenes] Esperon and General [Roy] Kyamko who had to have General Gudani replaced for a while' because he favoured the opposition.
General Gudani denied this yesterday, insisting he was unjustly relieved 'for ensuring clean and honest elections'.
