ELECTIONS Commissioner George Garcia yesterday said the proclamation of the winning party-list organizations will most likely be done on Thursday, or just two days after the special elections in Lanao del Sur.
“For whatever reason they are unable to transmit on the 24th, we can do the manual uploading and canvassing by the 25th. Then, perhaps, we can proclaim the party-list winners by the 26th,” Garcia said in a press briefing.
“We will have to prepare for this, send invites to the winners. But at all costs, we will be able to proclaim the latest on Thursday,” he added.
Garcia said the delay is already humiliating, especially for the party-list topnotchers.
“We would like to proclaim already. We are already embarrassed to those who are already entitled to guaranteed seats. In truth, they should have been proclaimed already,” he said.
Despite this, the poll official stressed that postponing the party-list proclamation was necessary, pending the conduct of special elections in Tubaran, Lanao del Sur.
“When you look at the numbers, the 63rd to 64th places are only separated by 1,000 votes or less than 2,000 votes. So, definitely, the results in Tubaran will affect the results of the party-lists. We really had to wait for it,” said Garcia.
To recall, the partial proclamation of winning party-lists was originally set Thursday last week at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) Forum Tent in Pasay City.
It was, however, postponed by the Comelec after it was determined that the still uncanvassed votes of Shanghai, China and Lanao del Sur remain material to the computation of party-list seats.
