COMELEC Chairman Brillantes promotes early voter registration at LRT

Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Chairman Sixto S. Brillantes Jr. this morning rode the Light Rail Transit (LRT) to drive home the poll body’s call for the Filipino public to register as voters.

Brillantes was at the Recto Station of the LRT Line 2 Friday, 29 July 2011, to inspect the installation of COMELEC posters and streamers at LRT stations and terminals.

Saying that he wanted to personally talk to the commuting public, the 72 year old poll chief asked representatives from the Light Rail Transit Authority (LRTA) if he could ride the LRT to return to his office in Intramuros Manila.

LRTA officials told the COMELEC Chairman that if he wanted to ride a train to the LRT Line 1 Central Terminal in Arroceros, Manila, which is the LRT station nearest the COMELEC Office, he would have to walk for about five minutes to reach the Doroteo Jose Station of the LRT line 1.

Brillantes gamely obliged, saying that he doesn’t mind the long walk as he misses riding the train.

Upon reaching the Doroteo Jose Station, Brillantes boarded a coach meant for females, children, persons with disabilities (PWDs) and senior citizens. He refused offers from people for the Chairman to take their seats.

“I wanted to personally tell the LRT commuters to register and register early. People should not wait for the deadline before they go to COMELEC offices to register,” Brillantes said.

“This is also a call for the public to patronize the LRT, not only because riding its trains are good for the environment, the LRT is also strong supporter of the Filipino people’s right to suffrage.”

Brillantes said that the LRTA allowed the COMELEC to post voter registration posters and streamers at all LRT stations and terminals.

COMELEC sets early voter's registration for 2013 polls

MANILA CITY, METRO MANILA — Starting May 3, new and eligible voters for the upcoming 2013 elections can start filing their applications, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said.

“We are urging all eligible first-time voters who will turn at least 18 years old on May 2013 to file their voter's registration this early.  Let us avoid last-minute registrations so we can take part in electing our nation's leaders,” said Comelec spokesman James Jimenez.

Deadline of registration is October 31, 2012 but the Comelec is encouraging early registration so it can prepare better for the conduct of automated polls with the use of special ballots, such as those used in the May 2010 national elections, he added.

Aside from first-time voters, persons who want to transfer registration records to a new residence; change, update or correct entries such as those for newly-wed women who changed surnames; and voters whose records were deactivated for failure to vote in the past two elections can also file their applications within the registration period.

All voter applications must be personally filed at the office of the election officer in the municipal or city office where the applicant resides and wishes to vote.

Voters no longer need to bring photographs because his or her biometrics records composed of a digital photograph, fingerprints, and signature will be entered in data capturing machines during the filing of registration.

The biometrics registration is important to purge the voter's list of duplicate registration records and to update records of voters who were unable to enroll their biometrics information with Comelec, according to Resolution No. 9149 promulgated on February 22.

Applications will be received from Monday to Saturday, inclusive of holidays during regular office hours from 8am to 5pm.  There will be no registration on December 22 to January 2 for the Christmas break.

Schedules for satellite registration in highly-populated areas will be announced after coordination with Comelec municipal and town offices.

Applicants must bring any valid school or government ID to register. Community tax certificates (Cedula) and certifications from the barangay will not be honored as valid identification documents.

For inquiries, contact the Comelec education and information department at (02) 525-9294. - By: Anna Valmero

COMELEC and watchdog gear up voter information in Muslim communities outside ARMM

QUEZON CITY, Philippines - The Commission on Elections and a citizen watchdog that is operating in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao have started a voters’ education partnership program intended for Muslim voters who came from the ARMM, but are residing in Metro Manila and other areas outside of the region.

Amid calls to move the constitutionally-set voting in ARMM in August, the Education and Information Department of the Comelec and Citizens Coalition for ARMM Electoral Reform jointly conducted voters’ education on the continuing registration for the electorates coming from the autonomous region but are residing in Muslim communities in Culiat and Tandang Sora areas in Quezon City.

Director James Jimenez, of the Comelec’s EID and Jumda Sabaani, chairperson of C-CARE, who were among the speakers in a forum Sunday attended by some 200 electorates, mostly Maguindanaon, Tausog and Maranao, took turns in stressing that “every citizen of the country can only register once.” 

The emphasis was premised on a finding that many electorates registered in ARMM were also registered in the barangays where they have established residence in Metro Manila and other parts of the country.  The Maguindanaons, Tausogs and Maranaos are natives of Maguindanao, Sulu and Lanao del Sur, which are all part of the five-province Muslim autonomous region.

In a phone interview, Sabaani relayed that her group and the Comelec explained to the electorates the election law that prohibits multiple registration. “If you are already registered in Metro Manila, you can no longer register in ARMM,” she said while explaining that the electoral office is continuously accepting registrants.

Sabaani said that with the assistance of Jimenez and Leo Lim, an information officer of the Comelec’s EID department, they explained the details of the continuing registration process by walking the electorates through the filling up of registration forms.

Culiat village chieftain Jaime Garcia, who welcomed the consultation participants, called upon the Muslim electorates in his village to “be responsible in exercising your right to suffrage,” emphasizing further “that your participation in a democratic exercise, such as election, is a manifestation of you freedom.”

Sabaani, a Tausog native, stressed to her fellow Islam believers “the need for us to register as a requisite for us to be able to exercise our right to suffrage.”

“It doesn’t really matter, as far as registration of voters is concern, whether elections in ARMM will push thru as scheduled in August or not,” the C-Care chair said even as she warned the public against dual or multiple registration.

“If you are registered in Culiat, you should no longer file a registration in ARMM, or, if you are already registered in ARMM, you should not register again in Culiat to prevent double registration, since this is against the law,” Sabaani said. 

Jimenez said that the voters’ registration in ARMM will be held this coming March 21 to 31, while in all other areas nationwide will be on April 1 to October 31.

“The Comelec will begin its nationwide drive to inform the public on the upcoming voters’ registration. We urge them to be on the lookout for voter education activities that will be conducted in their areas,” he said.

Jimenez also urged the public to visit the Comelec’s website www.comelec.gov.ph and its Education and Information Department’s blog at www.comelec.wordpress.com for updates and related information.

He reported that the poll body has already activated the "COMELEC TV Channel YouTube" and can be accessed on this URL: http://www.youtube.com/user/comelectv), which features voter's education and information videos.

“It will also feature a web news program that will deliver a round-up of the most recent Comelec-related news as well as video-clips of Comelec field officials at work,” he said.

Jimenez said that the public forum for Muslim voters at the Salam Mosque Compound in Culiat, was in preparation for the 10-day voters registration.

Another forum will be conducted Monday at the Legislative Wing of the Quezon City Hall.

The postponement of ARMM polls is being pushed to give way to a synchronized election in 2013.  It will also give the President a chance to appoint caretakers in those provinces.  (Romy Elusfa)