Malacaņang today said that it abides by all election laws and leaves it to the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) to implement such laws fairly and impartially.

Presidential Spokesperson Ignacio Bunye stressed this in a radio interview this morning in reaction to media reports that the management of ABC Channel 5 had allegedly considered as "gag order" a Department of Justice memorandum warning the TV station about making false reports on the results of the May 10 elections.

Bunye said the law stipulates that once the Comelec starts canvassing election returns, all outfits making unofficial, partial quick counts, except the National Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel), should stop doing so.

He said, "any other quick count not emanating from the Comelec or Namfrel may be deemed unauthorized information."

Allowing other outfits to make quick counts, according to Bunye, could also sow confusion among the public owing to differing quick count tallies.

Earlier, Justice Secretary Merceditas Gutierrez issued a statement reiterating that under the Revised Penal Code, media outlets publishing or disseminating false reports on election results can be held criminally liable.

The Comelec, on the other hand, had adopted an en banc resolution (Resolution No. 7149) ordering ABC 5 to stop its quick count on the ground that it had not authorized the TV station to do so. It also questioned the source of the station’s quick count.

This, Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye assured today as he bared responsive actions being slated by the Cabinet to cushion the effects of the price hike on the average Filipino family.

"We must face the reality of the global uptrend in oil prices, but we realize only too well that many of the poor may not be ready to suffer the brunt of sudden price increases in basic commodities at this point," he said.

In a radio interview this morning, Bunye bared that the Departments of Energy, Transportation and Trade and Industry are now coordinating efforts towards this end.

The DOE, he said is doing its best to convince the country’s oil players to keep its discounted prices for diesel fuel in the wake of the recent increase in prices of oil products.

Bunye said the government is hoping the local oil companies would continue, or even provide, additional discounted diesel outlets to mitigate the impending fare hike asked by public transport sector.

"Napakalaking tulong nitong subsidy na ito dito sa ating public transport sector at iyan ang dahilan kung bakit for a long time, sila ay napakikiusapan natin na idelay din nila iyong kanilang transport fare adjustment (This subsidy is a big help to the public transport sector, and that is the reason why we have been able to convince them to delay their request for fare hikes)," Bunye said.

The Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) today announced the increase in basic fares effective June of P1.50 and P2 for the first four kilometers for jeepneys and buses, respectively.

Malacaņang branded today as "ridiculous" a move by movie actor Fernando Poe Jr. to proclaim himself as winner of the presidential race in the May 10 elections.

Presidential Spokesman Ignacio Bunye clarified that it is only Congress in joint session that can proclaim the winning presidential candidate.

"Anybody who does so do it at his own risk, but definitely, any proclamation by a private (entity) or otherwise will not count," Bunye stressed.

Reports had it that Poe, standard-bearer of the opposition Koalisyon ng Nagkakaisang Pilipino, went to Mindanao to proclaim himself as the next president of the Republic.

Bunye pointed out that the administration has been playing fair and square not only during the campaign but in the entire election season.

The Palace official also said despite her growing lead in the citizens’ quick count being conducted by the National Movement for Free Elections, President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo’s camp has not claimed victory, but continuous to monitor the progress of the tabulation.

Bunye also picked up the cudgels for First Gentleman Jose Miguel Arroyo amid reports that he (Arroyo) was in Mindanao on election-related special operations.

"The First Gentleman is challenging the opposition to come out with specifics of time, date and place as to when he was in Mindanao (otherwise) they should just shut up," Bunye said, adding that Mr. Arroyo had not visited Mindanao immediately before and after the May 10 polls.