Comelec's Bulay claims headlines libelous; clarifies remarks were warning, not threat

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Rey Bulay on Monday  clarified his earlier statement he would seek the help of the Armed Forces of the Philippines to arrest critics of the poll body as not a "threat" but merely a "warning."

According to a report on "24 Oras", Bulay said those who will insist that he issued a threat to critics could face libel charges.

"Election laws rather, they decreed election offenses are criminal acts. Yun ang pinaghuhugutan ng salita ko," he said.

"Actually, di na kailangan yun eh because ignorance of the law excuses no one. Yung ginawa ko at yung word na ginamit ko ay warning. Yun ay sinabi ko para sa kabutihan din ng mga mamamayan na naniniwala," he added.

In a press conference, he explained he needed to differentiate warning from threat.

"Yung ginawa ko at word na ginamit ko ay warning. Maliwanag, sinabi ko verbatim sa tape, yan ay sinabi ko para sa kabutihan ng ng mamamayan. ...Nowhere in the whole video did I ever mention threat and critic," Bulay said.

The Comelec official also claimed some of the headlines that came out could be libelous.

"Pasok ba sa libel, sa tingin ko pasok," he said, adding they have libelous elements like "defamatory imputation, malice, publication and identifiability of the victim."

"Kung ako opisyal ng gobyerno ay matatakot magsalita dahil titirahin ako sa social media, yan ang restraint ng speech, eh lalo na yung maliliit na mamamayan na ayaw madamay, iyong silent majority," Bulay said.

"Sisiguraduhin natin na right of suffrage ay mangyari without fear or favor," he added.

On Friday, Bulay warned that the Comelec would seek the help of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to arrest people who are causing disorder in the elections.

“Yung mga nagko-comment ng public opinion na ang Comelec ay may sina-side-an, kinakampihan at mandadaya, ako po ay nagwa-warning sa inyo,” Bulay had said.

“We will not hesitate to call upon the AFP na ngayong sa panahon ito ay nasa ilalim ng kontrol ng Comelec na patulan, ipahuli, at ipakulong kayo, 'yung manggugulo sa eleksyon na ito sapagkat kami ay nasa side ng batas,” he had added.—Sundy Locus/LDF, GMA News