84 poll officers to be sent to Armm

EIGHTY-FOUR election officers (EO) and election assistants (EA) from Cebu will be sent to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) next month for the general registration of voters there.

Provincial Election Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano has submitted a list of personnel to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) 7 for the activity.

Castillano said the 84 Comelec personnel will form part of the 200 EOs and EAs from Central Visayas to be sent to the five provinces of ARMM.

This includes Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao, Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi which will conduct the general registration of voters from July 9 to July 18.

Castillano said the EOs and EAs will bring their voter’s registration machines to Lanao del Sur where they will be assigned.

In view of the deployment of their personnel and equipment in ARMM, Castillano said, the Comelec will suspend the registration of voters and validation of registration records in the affected regions in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao.

Equipment

Comelec Resolution 9443 suspends the registration of voters and validation of registration records from June 25, 2012 to July 31, 2012 in the cities and municipalities whose personnel and registration equipment will be deployed in ARMM areas.

In effect, all applications for registration, transfer, transfer with reactivation, reactivation, correction/change of entries and reinstatement in the Book of Voters received from April 1, 2012 to June 14, 2012 shall be heard in the next Election Registration Board (ERB) hearing scheduled on August 20, 2012, instead of July 16, 2012.

Validation

Castillano said the registration of voters and validation of registration records in Cebu Province and other areas in Central Visayas will resume on Aug. 1, 2012.

“We will resume on the first day of August because we will bring our voters’ registration machines to ARMM and it takes time to fix it back,” Castillano said.

Successful

The Comelec will deploy the non-ARMM personnel and equipment in the region to make the general registration of voters successful.

Castillano said he will conduct a general briefing of his personnel in the province, including Cebu City, on June 30 before they will leave for ARMM.

He said Cebu City north district election officer Marchel Sarno will go with the group to ARMM but south district election officer Edwin Cadungog begged off due to a prior commitment.

Sarno, for his part, said he is excited and ready to help in the general registration of voters in the ARMM region.

Off-site

Meanwhile, Castillano said the Cebu City Comelec Office in the south district will conduct an off-site registration today for the inmates of the Cebu Provincial Detention and Rehabilitation Center (CPDRC) in Barangay Kalunasan.

Castillano said the purpose of the activity is to allow the inmates to vote in the 2013 elections, particularly those who are not yet convicted and are awaiting trial.

Castillano said Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento will be at the site today to observe the registration.