MANILA, Philippines (Updated 3:55 p.m.) — The Commission on Elections said posts circulating on social media about alleged pre-shaded ballots in Singapore and Dubai are not true but its task force against fake news will meet Monday afternoon to verify the incidents.
Filipinos abroad started casting their votes on Sunday. The month-long overseas voting period will run until May 9.
“Wala po kaming natanggap na report kahit sa ating post, kahit na kaming mga opisyal natin dun sa Singapore and therefore, fake news po iyun. May kumakalat rin po na sa Dubai daw meron ding [pre-shaded ballot],” Comelec Commissioner George Garcia said in a briefing on Monday.
(We did not receive reports from our posts, even from our officials in Singapore, and therefore that’s fake news. There is also a post going around about a pre-shaded ballot in Dubai.)
However, Garcia later added that it is good the alleged incidents have already been brought to their attention for quick action. Unverified reports of irregularities in overseas voting and with vote-counting machines also spread online in the 2016 and 2019 elections.
Singapore-based Cheryl Abundo in a Facebook post said she received a pre-shaded ballot on Monday, which was identified as a spoiled ballot from Sunday. Four hours later, Abundo updated her post to say that the poll watcher she reached out to informed her that the ballot had since been marked void.
In a separate statement, the Philippine Embassy in Singapore said it only knows of one incident that involves a spoiled ballot unintentionally given to a voter on Monday. The embassy said it took note of the incident in its official minutes of voting.
Meanwhile, an overseas Filipino in Dubai made a separate post about a pre-shaded ballot.
“Kapag nakita na nung botante na may shaded ballots na, hindi na dapat tanggapin ni botante, dapat i-report na niya agad… kapag umalis na si botante without any opposition as to the ballots, then there’s a presumption already na malinis ‘yung balota nung tinanggap niya,” Commissioner Marlon Casquejo said.
(If the voter sees that the ballot has already been shaded, they should not accept it and they should report it immediately… if the voter leaves without any opposition as to the ballots, then there is a presumption that the ballot they received is clean.)
Garcia said Philippine posts abroad can easily flag and counter-check these incidents and accredited poll watchers and observers present in the polling places may report it right away.
The poll body plans to verify the incidents with the watchers’ minutes of voting.
"The best evidence of what happened during the election on that particular day would be the minutes of voting," Garcia said.
Abundo in an online message to Philstar.com said she is waiting for the poll watcher to update her if this morning's incident was included in the minutes. Abundo said she also sent an email to both Comelec and the Philippine Embassy in Singapore regarding the incident.
Comelec warned that those spreading false information about this year’s polls and electoral procedures may face prosecution. — with report from James Relativo