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Monday, July 16, 2007
Disorder rules barangay-SK listup
By Linette C. Ramos
CEBU CITY -- Hundreds of early registrants were dismayed over the disorder at the local poll offices Sunday as they went through the registration process, which took seven hours to finish for some.
The first day of registration for the synchronized barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections in Oct. 29 saw an impatient and rowdy crowd jeering at Cebu City Commission on Elections (Comelec) personnel for the delay.
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Many registrants, who stood in line for more than five hours, grew annoyed with the Comelec staff, whom they said were clearly not prepared for the registration.
Priority numbers were distributed late in the morning, but not everyone lining up received one.
In Lapu-Lapu City, shoving and a short altercation among applicants jockeying to register first marked the start of the registration at the Lapu-Lapu City Hall.
The absence of a system for the activity, such as guiding the new applicants on how register, was blamed for the lack of order.
But aside from the absence of a system for registration, the election offices only had camera each. This further delayed the process.
In Mandaue City, the local Comelec office put up a sign that they could only accept up to 500 applicants for registration a day since the office only has one camera.
However, it could no longer accept additional applicants since the list is already full from July 15 to 22.
“Dili na mi modawat ug dugang aplikante, gawas kon dunay extension nga itugot ang Comelec Manila. Kon wala’y extension, ang rehistro mobalik sa November 2007,” the poster read (We will only accept applicants if the Comelec Manila orders an extension for the registration. Registration will resume in November).
Not all of the applicants, though, were restless, as there were also those who patiently waited to be registered.
Sixteen-year-old Josie Ardita said she woke up at 5 a.m. to be able make it to the Comelec office before it opened.
She and her friends left their homes in Guba, a north district mountain barangay, on board a barangay vehicle. They arrived at the Comelec at 7 a.m., but finished with their registration only by past 2 p.m.
“Wala gyuy sistema ilang pagregister. Wala gani’y bisa’g railings or sign na mopahibawo unta asa mi mulinya. Huot gyud kaayo mao to nga ang mga tawo nagubot. Naa gyud untay mga taga Comelec diri sa gawas nagbantay (The registration was not systematic. They do not even have railings or notices informing us where to fall in line. It was so congested that people began to quarrel. There should have been Comelec personnel directing us outside their office),” she said.
Her group made sure to register on the first day so they will be qualified to vote for their friend, who is running for the SK chairmanship.
Cebu City north district Election Officer Marchel Sarno said they expected yesterday’s crowd turnout; but without enough railings, they had difficulty controlling the crowd.
He assured, though, that they will make it more organized by setting up separate lines each for SK registrants and barangay registrants Monday.
“We expected that there will be a lot of registrants today because the registration period is much shorter than the last election. Much as we wanted to make it faster for the registrants, we also did not want to give them false hopes that they will finish today,” Sarno said.
Among those at the Comelec office Sunday was Malubog Barangay Captain Federico Bontilao, who did not mind shelling out P1,000 from his own pocket to ferry his constituents to the Comelec early in the morning.
What bothered him, he said, was that after five hours of waiting, not one of the more than 100 people he brought was able to register.
He decided to rent a passenger jeepney to bring Malubog’s first-time voters to the Comelec to make sure that they get registered.
Like the Guba registrants, Bontilao’s group complained on the lack of coordination and organization at the poll office.
“Muuli na lang gyud mi ani kay wala man gyuy na-rehistro ani nila. Ako gyud ni silang gitabangan muari kay ganahan man gyud muparehistro unya maluoy ta ug magjeep kay mahal na kaayo ang plite (I think we will just go home because not one of them was able to register. I helped them to get here because public utility jeepney fare is expensive),” Bontilao told Sun.Star before registration ended at 7 p.m.
Besides, the estimated 100 individuals who joined him wanted to register so they could avail themselves of some government services.
“Dili lang ni pang election ang ila. Murehistro ni sila aron sad sila makakuha ug nge benefits pareha sa hospitalization benefits ug mga tambal kay mu-require man ni na registered voters sila (This is not just for election purposes. They wanted to receive hospitalization benefits and medicines—services which are given to registered voters)” Bontuyan said.
In Lapu-Lapu City, Election Officer Anajanette Lamban, though, said it was the applicants’ impatience that caused the trouble.
“Ang kada bata gusto nga maoy mauna (Each one wanted to register first). We told them to stand in line, but everybody pushed their way to our registration table,” she said.
The Comelec’s personnel, however, managed to control the situation and did not need to call for police assistance.
Registration began at past 7 a.m., with four chairs placed at the front door of the Comelec office to accommodate the registrants.
Still, there was delay because the office only has one data capturing machine, which takes a digital photo of each registrant.
“We can’t do anything about the problem. Even the other Comelec offices only has one, and in takes four minutes to take the photo and encode the data of each registrant,” she said.
Three teenagers told Sun.Star Cebu that having handled election registrations in the past, the Comelec should have been prepared with an improved system for a quicker and orderly registration.
“Dili baya mi mga tigulang na nga naanad na ani. Ilaha ning sala kon dili mi kaparehistro (They should understand that we are not adults who are already used to this. It is the Comelec’s fault if we could not enlist),” said Marianne Econg.
She said that most of them were students who could only register on Saturdays and Sundays.
For his part, Sarno reminded the public not to wait for July 22, the last day of registration, to avoid the rush. The registration period will not be extended.
Filipinos who are at least 15 years old but below 18 years old on Oct. 29 are qualified to register for the SK elections, as specified in Comelec Resolution 8220.
They also have to be a resident of their barangay for at least six months on elections day.
Registrants for the SK elections have to appear before the election officers in their localities with their identification cards, birth or baptismal certificates, or their school records. (Sun.Star Cebu/With reports from AIV/CYR)
For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star Pampanga. (July 16, 2007 issue)
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