Why E.B.C. Didn’t Force Separate Colors for Two U.D.P Factions

Chairman Puga was asked why the Elections and Boundaries Commission didn’t use its power to assign different colors to the two factions. Puga explained that the commission tried to get the factions to agree on their own. When they couldn’t find common ground, the commission went with a majority vote on Tuesday.

 

Oscar Sabido Puga, Chairman, E.B.C.

“That was the problem we were having, because everybody had this severe antagonism by one side against the other. The suggestion was being made that they should get together and  agree how they can differentiate and that is why the issue of the symbols came up. But at the end of the day they did not bring up the symbols when the application was made. It is on nomination day that the color is allocated, you have to present your color and symbol, which was asked of them and they did not. So they insisted on retaining the colors for themselves to the exclusion of another, this one retaining it to the exclusion and they wouldn’t bog, no way they were going to bog.”

 

Paul Lopez

“Legally, did the commission have the jurisdiction to assign such symbols?”

 

Oscar Sabido Puga

“Yes, yes, we could have done it with symbol and colors, we had legal precedents for that, that is clearly established. But in order to not force it on them, because we would have had to force the symbol on them, because they would not provide the symbols on nomination day we would to proceed on that basis.”