DEADLINE
BEATERS. Hundres of youths jammed the Comelec offices to beat today's deadline
to register for them to vote in the May 2007 elections. | | For
those who are voting in the synchronized national and local midterm elections
on May 14, 2007, today is the last day of filing for applications of registration
and transfer of registration records of the local registry.
Meanwhile,
those with intent to run and have not officially thrown in the hat to the arena
where they are willing to cast their bets, today is the final moment. |
All
of these activities are included in Commission on Elections (COMELEC) en banc
resolution 7707 promulgated August 30, 2006, which finally set the calendar of
activities relative to the May 14, 2007 synchronized local and national elections.
This
day, all COMELEC offices would be opened to receive the applications until five,
the official hours, says Bohol COMELEC information officer Juvenal Beniga in an
interview Friday. | | | He
said that it is the mandate of the office to accommodate people coming in to register
and transfer their registrations.
If
worse comes to worst, if there are still applicants within 30 meters from the
registering office at the break of five, then the office is even asked to accommodate
the persons in the waiting list.
The
persons within the immediate vicinity of the office would be entered in the logbook
and be called on to be given the final opportunity to get into the final list
of voters, Beniga said. |
As
this day comes, thousands of voters in the countryside have also gone the same
experience.
First
time voters registering and change of registration records applicants need only
to bring a valid identification card with a signature and photograph in it, adds
the elections officer.
By
that, school identification cards, company or office identification bearing a
photo and the signature are then acceptable.
However,
barely registering or filing ones application for registration is not the ultimate
way to get a voter a seat and slot in the final list of voters though, warns Beniga
adding that the applications would have to go through a screening process to determine
validity of application.
In
some parts of the country, the Comelec is now using computerized recording and
a person wanting to get multiple registrations could suddenly be traced when his
name pops up in some other registering office or precincts, Comelec officials
said.
Double
registration could mean disqualification of the voter and that could mean the
forfeiture of his rights guaranteed by the law, Comelec warns.
COMPLAINTS
VS. COMELEC
Complaints
against the city Commission on Elections (Comelec) on the on-going transfer and
registration of new voters are mounting due to lack of material time and computer
units to accommodate the "deadliners".
But
the Comelec blamed registrants who swarmed their office here only during the late
hours last week.
This
was bared by assistant election registrar Jossie Mondilla in an interview yesterday
morning.
The
complainants who were interviewed alleged that the Comelec provided no proper
procedure as to who would be the first to be entertained and no information dissemination
as to the procedure, if any.
Most
of them (complainants) trooped to the Comelec as early as two in the morning last
week just to be the first to secure an assigned number.
However,
the registrants were told later on by the city Comelec that they cannot anymore
be accommodated since there were listings in the previous days.
Mondilla
said that the Comelec here was only able to accommodate some 80 registrants per
day despite the fact that more than a hundred voters have already lined up.
It
was expected that hundreds or more of those who failed to register may not be
able to exercise their right to suffrage on May because of the Comelec's failure
to accommodate them.
The
situation is not only experienced here but also in other cities in region seven
and other parts of the country for the same lapses.
Mondilla
told the Chronicle that what the would-be voters had shown is the common attitude
of Filipinos who are fond of deadlines.
The
Chronicle tried to contact lawyer Ariel Selma, city Comelec registrar for comments,
but failed as he had not arrived at his office until one in the afternoon yesterday.
Comelec
said the city has about 56,516 voters as of October this year. This will further
swell after all new registrations for November and December are counted. (RVO) | 
