THE lack of sufficient preparation has caught up with the conduct of the country’s first fully-automated count.
In two polling places in Metro Manila, perennial problems such as long queues and lack of proper voter assistance brought problems to thousands of anxious voters.
At a makeshift polling center at the University of Asia and the Pacific (UA&P) in Pasig City, voters started to flock the area as early as 6 a.m. But there was an apparent lack of signage and maps that would guide people inside the basketball court.
Some people had trouble looking for their precincts, while an express lane for the physically handicapped was not immediately provided.
A volunteer, who asked not to be named, from the Parish for Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) however said disabled persons would be exempted from the two separate lines that led to four clustered precincts in the village of San Antonio.
The clustered precinct was housed in a makeshift booth made of wood and covered with blue plastic sheets, with tables and chairs to accommodate around six to ten voters at the same time.
There are 2,701 registered voters in the area composed of middle and upper class individuals living in high-rise condominiums.
Voting started past 7 a.m. which include independent presidential candidate Nicanor Perlas and son Christopher Michael.
Actor-host Drew Arellano also passed by to check his name in the voters’ list posted outside each clustered precinct.
Mixed reactions
First-time voter Karla Solis lamented the lack of system in queues, which resulted to confusion among voters.
“There was no system and there was no placement of directions or signs. However, we felt at ease when we were already inside the clustered precinct, the voting process inside went well, from registration to feeding the ballot to the machine,” she told Sun.Star.
The 22-year-old real estate employee said it took her less than five minutes to cast her vote, an experience she has seen as a good time-saver.
Melissa Villanueva, 25, for her part, found the preparations just enough.
“Well, it was very organized. I was expecting otherwise but I was glad it turned out fine, at least for me,” she said.
A first-time voter as well, Villanueva said she really took election day tips religiously such as coming to the polling precinct early.
Nenita Gabales, a 48-year-old housewife, said she does not need any prepared list of chosen candidates just to speed up her voting.
“It’s all in my mind already. I shaded the name of the candidate that deserves my vote, so there’s no need for that list,” she told Sun.Star.
Gabales, who never missed an election since the 1981 presidential poll, said the automated election should be given a chance to succeed.
“We don’t want to end as losers. We just have to cooperate,” she said without elaborating.
Lost names
In San Juan, voting at the Pedro Cruz Elementary School was marked with organized queues, thanks to maps and directions posted in the main bulletin board and corridors.
However, voters still encountered problems like names not included in the official list of voters.
PPCRV volunteer Gay Dumapias said some first-time and late registrants complained of not seeing their names on the list.
“They were really complaining but I told them to go to the Comelec office to countercheck. But some did not return to vote maybe because they were disappointed already,” she said in an interview.
Dumapias said the incident was just “isolated” while assistance desks of the police and military were placed right across the school.
“We are happy however that the support staff of the Comelec has been very cooperative. They really guide the voters,” she added.
The school had 3,810 voters in five clustered precincts including former President Joseph Estrada as one of the anxious individuals of the automated poll.
In the area, ambulant vendors round the vicinity to sell refreshments but some supporters of local candidates still distribute sample ballots, in violation of election laws.
Failure of two PCOS machines temporarily halted the election exercise at the Nicanor Ibuna Elementary School which had 13 clustered precincts.
Smartmatic-designated technicians tried to fix the problem so as not to further disrupt voting. Teachers however allowed the voters to fill out the ballots despite the malfunctioning automated machine.
Intimidation
In Pasig, election watchdog Compact for Democratic and Peaceful Elections (Compact) said a candidate for councilor allegedly intimidated voters.
In a news release, Compact said incumbent first district Councilor Rodrigo Asilo was seen “intimidating” voters in the villages of Nagpayong and Pinagbuhatan.
According to the group, the voter turnout has been low due to the “councilor’s activities.”
Witnesses to the incident are international observers Evert de Boer (The Netherlands), Tiina Hitunen (Finland), Heiko Meinhardt (Germany), Geline Avila (USA), Marybeth Brangan (USA), Narae Choi (Korea), Charles Anthony Santiago (Malaysia).
Vote extension
In a related development, the Department of Education (DepEd) said the teachers are more than willing to accommodate last-minute voters to allow more Filipinos to exercise their right to vote.
“Suffrage is a fundamental right of every Filipino so our BEIs (Board of Election Inspectors) should be prepared to stay in the polling precincts to accept voters,” Education Secretary Mona Valisno said.
Liberal Party senatorial candidate Risa Hontiveros warned that the one-hour voting extension could still disenfranchise voters.
“We have received reports that in some areas the rate in clustered precincts is 55 voters per hour,” she said.
“Even with the one-hour extension, that means only 500-600 voters will be able to vote, or a 50-60 percent disenfranchisement rate. Some areas are even recording 20 voters per hour, with higher disenfranchisement rate,” she added.
The Akbayan lawmaker, who lined up for hours at a polling center in Quezon City, said long queues turned off a lot of voters.
“Ironically, it is not the PCOS machine that is turning off voters. What's driving them away is the most backward symbol of traditional elections, which is queuing,” Hontiveros said.
Health concerns
Meanwhile, the Philippine Red Cross has attended to the medical concerns of 737 individuals as of 3 p.m. Monday.
“PRC workers were deployed to different voting precincts to give medical assistance to people who will suffer from heat stroke, wounds, and other illnesses due to congestion,” said PRC Secretary General Gwendolyn Pang.
She said these people experienced dizziness, headache, high blood pressure and wounds.
The PRC said the reports came from 18 Red Cross chapters nationwide, namely: Alaminos, Bataan, Cavite, Camarines Sur, Capiz, Cotabato, Ilocos Norte, Laguna, La Union, Manila, Nothern Samar, Pampanga- Angeles City, Quezon City, Surigao Del Norte, Zamboanga Sibugay, Zambales and Zamboanga Del Norte
“This is only a partial report of the general situation that will come from 96 Red Cross chapters nationwide,” said Pang.(Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)