Voting Irregularities Found In Philippines

More cases of vote irregularities were discovered Monday, raising doubts about national elections that President Fidel Ramos had praised as being fraud-free.

The Commission on Elections said candidates from both the Ramos coalition and the opposition had been shortchanged thousands of votes in Cavite province, which borders populous Manila.

Over the weekend, the commission confirmed that as many as 30,000 votes were added to the totals of three Ramos candidates in the Marcos family stronghold of northern Luzon Island.

Ramos spokesman Honesto Isleta denied the administration was involved in any wrongdoing. “The president would not tolerate it,” he said.

Ramos described the May 8 elections as “clean and orderly” and said the outcome showed the country was moving toward stable, honest government.