Comelec Central Visayas says ballot mix-up, VCM issues `very manageable’

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File photo shows vote counting machines being tested in Dumaguete City. PNA photo by Mary Judaline F. Partlow

CEBU CITY – Despite the mix-up of some ballots and glitches on the vote counting machines (VCMs), the May 12 elections in Central Visayas were considered “successful” and “generally peaceful.”

Lawyer Francisco Pobe, director of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in the region, said the concerns encountered during the midterm polls were “very manageable.”

“We did experience some glitches but we were able to resolve them right away,” he told reporters.

The glitches included some VCMs that didn’t work because the optical readers were dirty.

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“The machines are very sensitive to dust. What we did was to make sure the ballots were clean before we fed them. The problems were subsequently addressed,” he said.

Pobe said there were also ballots wrongly delivered, while others lacked a second page.

He said at least 102 ballots intended for Barangay Lambason in San Remegio town, Cebu, were delivered to Barangay Tambogon in the same town.

Twenty ballots meant for Argao town, south Cebu, were also delivered to Aloguinsan town; 19 ballots for Balamban ended up in Bantayan Island; while 42 ballots intended for Barangay Pardo in Cebu City were delivered to Candijay town in Bohol.

`Ballots were sealed’

“The ballots were sealed when they arrived here. There’s no way of knowing beforehand that these ballots were brought to places where they were not supposed to be,” Pobe said.

“We coordinated with the Philippine National Police and the Philippine Coast Guard to have these ballots delivered to their right locations,” he added.

In Mandaue City, at least 44 ballots did not have second pages.

However, Pobe explained that not all voters were expected to show up, which is why the shortage of ballots was resolved.

“There will always be extra ballots because the voter turnout is never 100 percent, so those ballots without a second page won’t be used. Instead, they will use the extra ones, as it’s already expected that not all registered voters will show up,” he said.

Based on his observations, Pobe said the voting experience in this year’s elections is smoother and better compared to the previous elections.

“In my personal opinion, the elections are more orderly now because the machines are nice and new,” he said.

As of 1 p.m., Pobe said the voters’ turnout in Central Visayas was already at 50 to 60 percent.

“We expect the number to reach 80 to 85 percent in the entire region,” he said.

Col. Arvie Bueno, spokesperson of the Central Visayas police, said the police did not receive reports of any major incidents in the region.

“So far, the conduct of the elections in Central Visayas is generally peaceful,” he said./ MR