The Long Awaited Election.............is here at last.

It was a breather so to say, when you have finished your duty as a law abiding citizen. One of this duty is the fullfillment of man's right of suffrage given to all law abiding citizens. Today this duty is once again given emphasis in the just concluded 1st Automated National Elections of the Philippines which happily was not as violent and more credible, unlike in the previous elections. As of now many have given their reactions for and against the said 1st automated elections in the country.

Many have lost their names in the official list of voters. Others were not so lucky because the machine keeps on spitting out their official ballots because of improper filling up. This is the problem many uninformed or indifferent people usually encounters if they don't give a damn on whats happening around them. They should have checked their names in the Comelec registry several months ago or after the official registration have stopped. It is so easy to check the website of the Comelec to know if your name is listed or not.

In our hometown of Palompon, Leyte, it was so peaceful, but of course the usual money that changes hands were there. In previous elections money flowed in the hundreds only, but now we heard that other candidates have doubled the amount into thousand. It is said that many have changed their preference of candidates because of this. Since money stills talk in some places, we can only say that people accepts his lot for a mere number of happy days and don't think about the three years  that the person who gave them money will sit in his post. Well, it is their life, I can't blame them

if that's what they want. They have just to wait for another three years to taste the said amount of money they receive today.

This is the Gabaldon Building of the Palompon South Central School where most of the voters located in the poblacion of the town voted, which include myself. Due to excitement and apprehension, majority of the voters went to the polls very early expecting to vote without any hitch and trouble.

But as the hour goes people are coming and make their presence felt making the automated voting an experience similar to the old days when it is done manually. Partly to blame of course is the system being implemented by the people concerned with the voting itself like the employees of the Department of Educations mainly the teachers, the poll watchers of different political parties, the official watchdogs like the PPCRV and other private organizations helping make the elections credible and clean.

The usual complaint is the long time of waiting to vote due to the presence of so many voters as a result of the clustering of several precincts as a result of reducing cost of the elections itself. But the system itself is one of the major causes of grumbling especially the senior citizens who are made to stand for hours just to vote. They could have numbered the piece of paper, (and call them as their number indicates), distributed to sign the name, precinct number and the number sequence they required before giving them official numbers before they are allowed to enter the polling place.

Well, I just do hope that in the next elections changes should be in place to minimize the number of hours a voter spent in the polling place. These are some of my suggestions to sped up the said election process:

           1. Hi-Technology says that we can already use the "touch screen process" that is common nowadays, especially on mobile cellphones;

            2. We can easily removed the use of hard copies like voters ID card, by totally implementing the "biometrics system" now common in various establishment using the thumbs in entering their establishment;

            3. I have seen this method being used in the Malaysia-Singapore borders, wherein workers coming from Malaysia who works in Singapore just put their thumbs in the machine and voila they are accepted immediately to enter Singapore if they have already records in place in the data base of the Immigration Bureau;

            4.  Cost could definitely go down since you will not be using so many unnecessary things like indelible ink, ballot secrecy folders, shading pen, reduction of BEI's from 3 to 1, official ballots, and other paraphernalia that is being used as of this 1st ever automated election in the Philippines.

            5. Voting could be reduced from one hour to just about five minutes.

Early results in Palompon, Leyte indicates that the winner in the mayoralty race is the former Mayor Ramon Onate against current Mayor Yoly Tupa with a big difference of about 5,000 votes.

 It has been said this is the result of the buying binge of voters. It so happens that the camp of Yoly Tupa blinked first, the result of which is the high attrition that turned into votes. It just shows that the people of Palompon is not yet educated and still can be blinded by dirty money if the source of the said money is evil; and corrupt money if the source comes from hard earned money. 

Once again Richard is in town to campaign...........even if barred to run

Richard Gomez is really determined to run for Congress in the 4th District of Leyte even if initially banned by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to run in the forthcoming elections on May 10, 2010 due to lack of residence in Ormoc City.

He is telling supporters that he has already filed a motion for reconsideration with the agency and he is willing to fight unto the end or up to the Supreme Court if denied by the Comelec en banc. We'll that's the spirit. If he thinks he has all the right to be heard then so be it. It is better than doing nothing at all.

Through name recall, Richard now has a big advantage against his opponent if the election is held now. He has visited Palompon and other towns of the 4th District of Leyte for several times already. And has been meeting with people that will help him through the rigorous campaign period and maybe giving away campaign funds needed to make sure that targeted constituents will be loyal to him during election day.

In the much publicized automation of the 2010 elections, I do believe many voters are still unaware of the coming elections new method of voting. The trust of the Comelec's information drive should be the countryside, where voters are unaware about the forthcoming automated elections.

Fortunately, those who have televisions in their homes are fortunate enough to know the mechanics or what to do in the forthcoming elections due to bombardment by the Sex Bombdancers of Eat Bulaga, Channel 7 the "May Bilog na Hugis Itlog" voters education program where viewers are being treated by the hour on the hour on the new method or mode on how people should vote in this first ever automated elections in the Philippines.

What I learned from the daily information drive being initiated by TV Station Channel 7's morning program is that after the signing of the Chairman, Board of Election Inspector (BEI) on the space provided in the official ballot, the voter with his ballot and the pen provided, has to go to his designated place and there blacken the space provided for the candidate he do like.

The vote should be according to the number of votes required i.e. one (1) vote for president, one (1) vote for vice president, twelve senators, one (1) congressman, and so on..........


Note: 1) Any over voting will not be read or voided, but under voting will be read and not voided by the machine.

2) Incomplete blackening of the area to be shaded will render the whole ballot invalid because the machine will not read it. Better not to write anything on the oval to be shaded if you are not sure about the candidate.

3) If there is an incomplete shading and the machine spit out the ballot, you will be given another chance to correct the mistake or shade the oval correctly, after which no more chance will be given to any voter to repeat the process.

4) There are no extra ballots printed, so please take care that you will not commit any mistake while voting. "One voter, one ballot policy".

Comelec bars Richard Gomez from joining Congress race

By Anna Valmero

MANILA, Philippines—The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has barred Richard Gomez from running as fourth district representative of Leyte, saying the actor lacks the required one year residency to join the congressional race.

The Comelec first division, chaired by Commissioner Rene Sarmiento, ruled that Gomez had not resided in Ormoc City for a year prior to his filing of candidacy for him to qualify to represent Ormoc City in the House of Representatives.

Buenaventura Juntilla of Barangay Libertad, Ormoc City has petitioned the Comelec to disqualify Gomez, saying the actor is a resident of East Greenhills, San Juan City and not of Carlota Hills, Ormoc City as Gomez indicated in his certificate of candidacy.

Raymond Cajucom, legal counsel for Gomez, said they would appeal the ruling. “The decision is not yet final. We would file a motion. Parang sa pelikula lang ito, nagpapabugbog muna ang bida pero sa huli ay magwawagi (It’s just like in a movie, the main actor will be mauled at first but in the end he will emerge victor),” said Cajucom.

118th Regular Session...........Palompon SB

Since my schedule is not fully loaded, I decided to visit the local SB session hall, and to my surprise I've learned a lot from the said visit. It is also a good time to know what our local legislators are doing. And of course you will know whom to vote again and assess the qualification of most of the municipal councilors who wants to be sent back to the said august body.

Upon my arrival I was immediately treated to the fast approval of different budgets of various baranggays of the town such as Central I, Santiago, Catigahan, Mazawalo who has the highest budget approved that day. Other baranggays are enjoined to follow the example of Baranggay Mazawalo on how they were able to get the approval of P1,602,193.00 pesos as their annual budget while others cannot even get half or one fourth of the said amount.

The only baranggay who suffered a snag in their attempt to get their budget approved was Baranggay San Pedro when the Federation of Sangguniang Kabataan headed by Hon. Hazel Cangmaong asked for a deferment of the said baranggay's budget due to the fact that the SK head of the said Baranggay have not remitted the annual dues to the SK Federation.

The session was even suspended to give way to the explanation of Brgy. Captain Roxas of San Pedro, on what happened to the said allocation wherein it was mandated by the Local Government Code that ten per cent of their budget should be allocated for the SK of all baranggay's concerned. After some questioning, mostly from Hon. Gilbert Manongsong, who even offered to give some advise and solution on how to solve the impasse, he was instructed to talk with the SK and SK Federation heads respectively on how they will go about the problem.

Hon. J. Villardo III questioned why the local finance committee of the said Baranggay have been endorsing budgets which are still questionable, thereby making the SB Committee on Appropriation and Finance to endorse also to the SB a budget that is not yet ready for approval.

After the session's suspension was lifted, Atty Jesus Villardo III proposed to make a resolution on each of the Memorandum of Agreement's (MOA's) executed by the Hon. Mayor Eulogio Tupa with different organizations or agencies to make it more binding and executory. Particular emphasis was made on the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) made by Professors or Doctors of Education coming from the Visayan State University (VSU) in Baybay, Leyte headed by Dr. Eduardo Mangaoang and two others, all academic experts, on the PHESCHEM Corp. plant site located and encompassing Baranggay Cantandoy, San Miguel and Liberty of this town.

Atty. Villardo said that upon reading the EIA report, he was amenable that they have to adopt the recommendation made by the EIA team because of the urgency and necessity of stopping the degradation, destruction and the saving of what is left from the wanton and unthinkable wastage of our natural resources and watershed area which is supposed to guaranty ours' and our future generation's drinking water reservoir.

Another resolution that the SB wanted to adopt and approve is the recall of Sr. Insp. Federico Sanchez to the Palompon Police Station saying that the re-assignment of him was made within the Comelec ban (60 days) on transfers and re-assignments. They also wanted to include the citations and awards given to the said police officer as a reason for his retention.

Orendain's sanggunian rules of procedure