PRISONERS have the right to vote but they will not be allowed for this year’s village and youth council elections.
Misamis Oriental Provincial Jail (MOPJ) Warden Dominador Tagarda said they have tried to seek approval of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to allow inmates to vote but to no avail, citing security reasons.
Unlike national elections where they can vote only inside the jail, inmates who would vote for barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections would have to be brought to their respective barangays with more jail guards and escorts involved.
“Maglisod kita sa pagpagawas kanila tungod kay daghan kanila lagyo kaayo ang lungsod kung diin sila narehistro (It would be hard considering most of them are registered in far places),” Tagarda said.
The provincial jail houses over 800 inmates now.
City Comelec Officer lawyer Ramil Acol also confirmed that the almost 3,000 inmates at the Cagayan de Oro City Jail will not participate in the local elections either.
He said this is based on a Supreme Court decision in 2016 that stopped inmates from the national penitentiary and detainees in local prisons from voting in local polls but allowed them to vote in the national elections.