Bataan election supervisor Gilbert Almario. Photo by Ernie Esconde
BALANGA CITY — The Commission on Elections has continued to purge its national list of registered voters of doubtful ones and assured that those with already existing applications will be discovered, the provincial election supervisor of Bataan announced Tuesday.
Lawyer Gilbert Almario said that with the new lists prepared by the poll body, double registration and other anomalies will be easily detected and cancelled.
“Makikita pa rin ito although inalis na ito sa opisina ng election officer at inilagay sa provincial office pero still sinisigurado na makikita doon ang mga nag-file ng application. Makikita ang mga may existing application sa ibang lugar,” he explained.
He added that this was one way of cleaning the voters’ lists after being scrutinized by the Election Registration Board (ERB) for a certain period of time.
“After verification by the ERB, ibabalik ang mga listahan sa opisina ng election officer at makikita doon ang mga may application sa ibang lugar kaya doon mape-prevent ang double registration,” Almario said.
Almario made the assurance for the credible lists of voters for the 2022 polls during the introduction of a mobile application for areas not available to online registration in the absence of internet connection.
In Bataan, mobile registration of voters will be applied only in the town of Bagac. He said that in Region 3, there are 29 election offices without internet access while all over the country, there are more than 500 EOs.
Almario said that under the mobile registration in Bagac, a registrant will use his cellphone: “Doon ida-download nila ang Comelec application sa website at ang kanilang mga information ay ita-type lang nila katulad ng sa application form at after makumpleto ang proseso ay dadalhin nila ito sa office ng election officer dahil may QR code yon.”
The election officer will then print the application form of the registrant after scanning the QR code. He said that the applicants do not have to hurdle long lines to secure an application form although they still have to appear in the Comelec municipal office.
“Ang pagkakaiba ng Bagac sa ibang bayan ng Bataan ay sa mobile app na dadalhin ng registrant ang cellphone sa municipal office ng Comelec samantalang ang sa 11 municipalities na may internet access ay nasa bahay lang ang aplikante, magta-type sila sa cellphone at ise-send ito,” Almario said.
Those using I-rehistro or online registration are Balanga City and the towns of Dinalupihan, Hermosa, Orani, Samal, Abucay, Pilar, Orion, Limay, Mariveles, and Morong.
Almario said that as of April 19, 2021, there are 513,692 registered voters in Bataan and registration shall go on until September 30, 2021.
He urged voters to register while observing safety and health protocols against the coronavirus disease.
