MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday signed a memorandum of agreement (MOA) with SM Supermalls to use malls for the public demonstration of vote counting machines (VCM).
The Comelec, headed by Chairman Saidamen Pangarungan, and SM Supermalls, represented by its president Steven Tan and senior vice president Bien Mateo, signed a MOA wherein all the 78 SM malls would be utilized for voter education.
VCMs would be set up in these malls and 300,000 mock ballots would be used to give mall goers the experience of using the machines.
Pangarungan hoped that with this project, they would be able to dispel apprehension and fear of some voters regarding the use and security of the VCMs.
“These are state-of -the-art equipment that have been used by other
countries. They are engineered to be secure and tamper proof. The programming and codes for the machines are also safe and secure. So, we invite our voters to test them and familiarize themselves with these machines. So that when Election Day comes, we are confident that our votes will be recorded and counted securely,” he said.
SM Supermalls has been partnering with the Comelec since 2014.
Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said the demonstration of the VCMs would take place during mall hours and would be made available to everyone interested to participate and not just registered voters.
Commissioner Marlon Casquejo said that while the Comelec accommodated mall voting during the 2016 national and local elections, it would not be an option for the upcoming May 9 polls.
“I think that was in 2016 election where mall voting was considered by (former) Chairman (Andres) Bautista but there are things to be done before this would be approved. For this 2022 elections it was not considered,” said Casquejo.
Comelec Executive Director Bartolome Sinocruz Jr. explained that the legal basis for mall voting was not yet very clear and still being studied, so they would stick with the standard operating procedure wherein the voters would proceed to their respective voting centers.
No extension
Despite reports of delays in some Philippine posts, overseas voting cannot be extended beyond May 9, Casquejo said yesterday.
“There cannot be any extension because we are only until May 9, Philippine time. We cannot extend beyond May 9, that would be in violation of the Constitution,” he said.
According to the Constitution, the elections should be held on the second Monday of the month of May. But overseas voting is a special case and starts a month ahead until May 9.
While they have been resolving problems in overseas voting, there is one area that remains an issue – Shanghai in China, which remains under lockdown because of COVID-19. There are 1,600 registered Filipino voters in Shanghai.
As for Timor Leste, the poll official said there is a flight leaving on Thursday but it would not be a direct flight, and would have to first travel to Kuala Lumpur.
There are around 600 registered voters in Timor Leste, but Casquejo is confident that the embassy in the area would exert effort to find these Filipinos so they could cast their votes.
Gun ban
With less than a month before the May 9 elections, the Comelec’s Committee on the Ban on Firearms and Security Concerns said that out of 4,281 applications for gun ban exemption, only 2,160 were approved and 906 were denied, while 1,315 are still being evaluated by the Comelec, the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.
Last month, the Comelec streamlined its application process for gun ban exemption during the election period.