THREE weeks after restarting the printing of official ballots for the May 2025 polls, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday said they are already nearing the halfway mark of its completion.
In an interview, Comelec chairman George Garcia said they are already at almost 48 percent of the ballots printed at the National Printing Office (NPO).
As of February 18, the Comelec reported that 34,235,042 ballots have been printed, which includes 17,254,221 ballots printed by Miru Systems and 16,980,821 ballots produced by the NPO.
The running total means that 47.48 percent of the 72,097,420 ballots have already been printed.
The Comelec said 37,862,378 ballots will still have to be printed.
For Miru, it still needs to print 19,595,657 ballots, while the NPO must be able to print 18,266,721 ballots.
Given the current pace, Garcia said the Comelec may be able to complete the printing of official ballots by early March.
“We might be able to complete ballot printing to, hopefully, March 9 or March 10,” he said.
He said this will allow the poll body to focus on the manual and machine verification of the official ballots.
“For the remaining days until April 14, we will dedicate them all to verification,” he said.
Meanwhile, in a social media post, the Comelec set the Overseas Voting Counting System (OVCS) pre-voting enrolment period from March 10 to May 7, 2025.
“Overseas Filipino voters of Philippine posts abroad adopting internet voting in the 2025 elections should enroll in the OVCS,” said the Comelec.
The Comelec – Office for Overseas Voting (OFOV) said pre-voting enrolment may be done personally using the overseas voter’s own internet-capable devices.
It said there will also be voting kiosks set up at the different Philippine posts during the overseas voting period.
It also said that overseas voters may also enroll during the field/mobile pre-voting enrolment to be scheduled by Philippine posts.
To do the pre-voting enrolment, the voter should sign up using the official link provided by the Comelec. He or she must then follow the step-by-step instructions indicated by the system.
Once the enrolment is successful, the Comelec said the overseas voter will be able to vote online during the 30-day overseas voting period.
To note, the overseas voting period for the 2025 polls is set from April 13 until May 12, 2025.
There are 77 Philippine posts abroad that will use the OVCS for the 2025 polls to be provided by the Joint Venture (JV) of SMS Global Technologies, Inc. & Sequent Tech Inc.
It is the first time that the system will be used in Philippine elections.
VOTE BUYING
PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil yesterday assured the public of the PNP’s full commitment in the fight against vote-buying and vote-selling in the upcoming national and local elections.
Marbil has instructed all police units throughout the country to intensify monitoring efforts, conduct information drives, and work closely with the Comelec in the implementation of thw “Kontra Bigay” campaign.
The Konta Bigay campaign was launched by the Comelec last February to combat issues of vote-buying and vote-selling during elections.
“As the nation prepares for the 2025 elections, the PNP stands firm in its duty to protect the sanctity of the electoral process,” Marbil said.
“Our personnel will not only implement but wholeheartedly embrace the Kontra Bigay campaign, ensuring a clean, honest, and fair election for every Filipino voter,” he also said.
Marbil urged the public to report cases of vote-buying and vote-selling and other electoral fraud so the police force can act on them.
In a statement, the PNP Public Information Office (PIO) said vote-buying and vote-selling across the country will be “strictly monitored.”
“Individuals caught in the act may face immediate warrantless arrest by law enforcement agencies,” the PIO said.
Vote-buying and vote-selling are punishable by imprisonment of one to six years, based on the Omnibus Election Code.
AUTOMATED POLLS
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court yesterday directed the Comelec and automated election system provider Miru Systems Co. Ltd. to comment on the petition filed by the Right To Know, Right Now Coalition and other groups seeking to compel them to disclose documents in relation to the P18 billion contract that they signed for the conduct of the 2025 polls.
The decision was reached by the magistrates during their en banc session.
“The SC required the Comelec and the Miru Joint Venture to comment on the petition within a non-extendible period of 10 days from receipt of notice,” the SC said.
In a short statement, Garcia said the poll body will “comply accordingly” to the SC directive.
He said the poll body has already provided to the petitioners “everything that they requested” in accordance with its policy of “complete transparency.”
“We have records to prove that and certainly, include these in our Comment,” Garcia said.
Joining the Right to Know, Right Now Coalition in the petition are the Center for Media Freedom and Responsibility, the Philippine Press Institute, journalists, and academics.
The petitioners have asked the High Court to compel the poll body and Miru to act on their request for information with regard to the P18 billion contract in light of the withdrawal of the latter’s local partner St. Timothy Construction Corporation from the joint venture agreement and its impact on the 60 percent Filipino ownership requirement.
They also asked Comelec and Miru to provide an updated joint venture agreement that includes the current composition of the joint venture, the detailed allocation of remaining partner’s financial, technical, and operational contributions or any applicable contributions of money, property, or industry, along with their monetary valuation and the resulting percentage interest of each remaining partner.
Former Caloocan Rep. Edgar Erice has also filed a petition before the SC asking the magistrates to issue a temporary restraining order and to eventually declare null and void the contract between the poll body and Miru following the withdrawal of St. Timothy as the latter’s partner. – With Victor Reyes and Ashzel Hachero
