MANILA, Philippines - Former senator Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. yesterday made a partial payment of P36 million to the Supreme Court, sitting as the Presidential Electoral Tribunal (PET), to cover his election protest against Vice President Leni Robredo.

Marcos, accompanied by his lawyer Victor Rodriguez, arrived at the SC compound along Padre Faura St., Manila and handed to the clerk of court a check worth P36,023,000 as initial payment. 

In an open letter to the PET, the friends and supporters of losing vice presidential candidate Marcos said that the second tranche amounting to P30 million would be paid on or before July 14. 

Attached to the letter was the list of 40 donors who helped raise the P36,023,000.  

Two of the donors had the surname “Roa” – Alfredo Roa of Intramuros, Manila and Ruby Diaz Roa of Makati Garden Club. Another was named Gabriel Roa Limjoco of Salcedo Village, Makati City.

Asked if they were related to President Duterte whose middle name is Roa, Marcos said that there were thousands of people with the surname Roa in the country. 

The total amount P66,023,000 would cover the cost for the resolution of his election protest against Robredo. 

Robredo, on the other hand, was reportedly required to pay the cash deposit in P8 million last April 14, which happened to be Good Friday, and another P7,439,000 on or before July 14. 

But Robredo reportedly failed to pay the partial P8 million and instead filed a manifestation last April 12. 

The Marcos camp should have paid the fee last April 12 but since Manila Mayor Joseph Estrada declared that day, Holy Wednesday, a non-working holiday for all government employees, the SC was closed.

By default, yesterday became the last day for him to pay the amount.

“It is a good thing that I have good friends who believe that my election protest was right and just. So they came together, gathered all their contributions and wrote an open letter to the SC so they could already start the process,” Marcos said. 

But even if they deposited the first tranche yesterday, Marcos would still file a motion for reconsideration today because they believe that the calculation should be by clustered precinct. 

When asked to comment on the Robredo camp’s statement that he should pay P185 million to cover all precincts and not just P66 million, Marcos replied, “That is their opinion.”

Several of his supporters had been waiting for him outside the SC since yesterday morning. The mood became festive and the crowd cheered when Marcos arrived.

‘First cause of action’

Robredo’s lead counsel Romulo Macalintal said Marcos should shoulder the P185 million for the retrieval of ballots and other poll materials from over 92,000 precincts covered by his electoral protest against the Vice President.

In a press conference in Pasay City, Macalintal said all 92,509 clustered precincts are covered by Marcos’ election protest under his so-called “first cause of action.”

Marcos, in his protest filed last July before the PET, is seeking a recount in 27 provinces and cities covering more than 36,000 precincts.

He also asked the PET to nullify the results in Basilan, Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur.

Macalintal and Maria Bernadette Sardillo, another lawyer for Robredo, however, said the precautionary protection order (PPO) issued by the PET on July 12, 2016 covers not just the clustered 36,465 precincts but all the 92,509 clustered precincts.

“Thus, based on the computation of the PET that a party shall pay P500 per established precinct, Marcos should be assessed a total of P185 million,” Macalintal said.

The 92,509 clustered precincts are composed of 369,138 established precincts.

Marcos, the son of the late dictator, questioned the integrity and reliability of the vote counting machines (VCMs), consolidating canvass system (CCS) units and other storage devices used for the clustered precincts during the May 9, 2016 elections.

The PET earlier ordered Marcos to pay P66.02 million as cash deposit for the retrieval of poll materials for his protest. –  With Helen Flores