Wednesday, April 05, 2006
Comelec cautions field offices: Wait for requests
Before verifying those signatures for Charter change, the local Commission on Elections (Comelec) wants to make sure procedures are followed to the letter.
Cebu Provincial Election Supervisor Edwin Cadungog, who will be meeting with all his field officers in relation to the people’s initiative, said he will insist on getting a subscribed letter of request from the proponent, before field officers can start with the verification.
As of yesterday, he has not received any report that signatures have been turned over to the field offices in the towns.
In Manila, Press Secretary Ignacio Bunye said the people chose to side with stability and reform when they supported the people’s initiative.
Bunye, who is also presidential spokesman, said the people’s initiative is fast gaining support from different sectors and recent estimates hover at five million signatures gathered nationwide.
Presidential adviser for political affairs Gabriel Claudio, for his part, said persistent discussions on Charter change launched by the proponents have helped increase public awareness and support.
Claudio cited a Pulse Asia survey conducted from Feb. 18 to March 4, which showed that 43 percent favor Charter amendments, a leap from last year’s survey result, when 20 percent supported the exercise.
Meanwhile, Cadungog assured they will not be paralyzing the delivery of basic services, such as attending to those who will visit for registration, transfer of registration or for correction of entries in the voter’s registration records.
In a related development, Dalaguete Mayor Ronald Allan Cesante said they have started collating the signatures gathered from different barangays in his town, which has 33,000 registered voters.
He will soon be meeting with Dalaguete’s Comelec field officer, so he would know what his next action should be on the signatures.
Cesante, the president of the League of Municipalities in the Philippines-Cebu Chapter, said almost 6,000 signatures have been collated as of Monday and they are still gathering signature sheets from other barangays.
The mayors were supposed to issue a manifesto opposing the people’s initiative, but they will not push through with the plan after President Arroyo announced she supports the gathering of signatures from the different barangays. (MBG/(Sunnex)
For Bisaya stories from Cebu. Click here. (April 5, 2006 issue)
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