The Commission on Elections (Comelec) holds mock elections on Saturday, February 13, to prepare for the May 9 national and local elections. For the first time, many voters try to vote in malls aside from the usual schools.
Paterno Esmaquel reports.
Ilang buwan bago mag-eleksyon, ginawa ng Comelec ang mock elections sa dalawampung lugar sa Pilipinas. Kasama sa mga lugar na ito ang mga mall kagaya nito.
(A few months before the elections, the Comelec held mock elections in 20 areas across the Philippines. These places included malls like this.)
Ginawa rin ang mock elections siyempre sa mga eskwelahan. Binisita ito ni Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista. Isa sa mga napansin niya: Napatagal sa pagboto ang unang botante sa Baseco.
(Mock elections of course were held also in schools. Comelec Chairman Andres Bautista visited these places. One of the things he noticed: The first voter in Baseco took a long time to vote.)
Eleven minutes bumoto si Lawrence Panis. Sabi ni Bautista, dapat daw sana two to three minutes lang. Kailangan daw mag-isip pa ng paraan ang Comelec para pabilisin ang proseso.
(Lawrence Panis spent 11 minutes to vote. Bautista said it should have been only two to three minutes. He said the Comelec should think of ways to speed up the process.)
ANDRES BAUTISTA, COMELEC CHAIRMAN: Ang ayaw nating mangyari is masyadong humaba ‘yung pila e, kasi nauubusan din ng pasensya ‘yung ibang botante kung kaya’t hindi sila bumoboto. Ngayong mock elections, may mga bumoto rin sa mall.
(What we want to avoid is for the lines to get too long, because the voters lose their patience, and that’s why they don’t vote. During these mock elections, some people also voted in malls.)
ROLY LIGTAS, VOTER: Mas convenient dito, aircon, kasi doon malayo, mga 2 kilometers away from this barangay
(This is more convenient, airconditioned, because the other one is far, around 2 kilometers away from this barangay.)
Bukod sa mga botante, bumisita rin sa mall si dating Comelec chairman Sixto Brillantes. Pinuri niya ang mga ginagamit na makina, pati na si Bautista. Noong isang araw kasi, inamin ng Comelec na may konting sira ang mga makina. Sabi ni Brillantes, buti raw at hindi sinungaling ang Comelec.
(Aside from voters, former Comelec chairman Sixto Brillantes also visited the mall. He praised the vote-counting machines as well as Bautista. The other day, the Comelec admitted glitches in the machines. Brillantes said it’s good that the Comelec is not lying.)
SIXTO BRILLANTES JR, FORMER COMELEC CHAIRMAN: They are more transparent than we were in 2013. And it’s a good thing, what they’re doing now. That’s my regret - I should have been transparent also in 2013
BAUTISTA: E di wow. Salamat, chairman.
(Oh wow. Thank you, chairman.)
Sa mga susunod na raw, magbibigay ng update ang Comelec tungkol sa itinakbo ng mock elections. Pero hindi raw nila inaasahang perpekto ito. Gusto raw nilang alamin kung ano pa ang dapat baguhin.
(In the next few days, the Comelec is set to give more updates on the mock elections. But the Comelec doesn’t expect it to be perfect. Instead they want to know the things they need to change.)
Paterno Esmaquel, Rappler, Manila. – Rappler.com