Congressmen to Comelec: Extend voter registration
>> Wednesday, September 29, 2021
By Micelle R. Guillang
Top lawmakers want the
Commission on Elections (Comelec) to be compelled to extend voter registration
for the May 2022 national and local elections by a month or until Oct. 31.
House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, Majority Leader Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and Minority Leader Joseph Stephen “Caraps” Paduano filed House Bill no. 10261 on Sept. 21 to extend the deadline for voter registration set on Sept. 30.
The extension of voter registration would prevent “massive voter disenfranchisement” due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the House leaders believed.
“At a time of uncertainty, each and every office of the government is tasked to be flexible and alert,” the House leaders stated in the measure.
“To avoid massive disenfranchisement, the [Comelec] must extend the period for voter registration until Oct. 31, 2021. This is also to give leeway to Filipinos whose registration was delayed because of the prevailing circumstances,” they added.
The solons underscored the importance that “every qualified Filipino” be able to elect the leader they want in the upcoming elections.
The conduct of regular elections, they pointed out, is a crucial event in the life of a democratic nation.
“As a basic precept of democracy, each of our kababayans must be given the utmost and widest opportunity to participate in the electoral process,” they said.
They also noted that voter registration would have been an ordinary concern if there had been no ongoing public health crisis.
“But we are living under extraordinary circumstances. The public health crisis has been prolonged and many prospective voters have been forced to delay their registration this year and in 2020,” the solons said.
During Wednesday’s plenary session, the bill was referred to the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms.
Similar measures have previously been filed by other lawmakers.
In August, Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said that voter registration cannot be prolonged as the poll body has to follow its calendar of activities despite several suspensions of its operations due to lockdowns.
It only extended voter registration hours last 23 August, from 8:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M., Mondays through Fridays; and 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., Saturdays and holidays.
As of August 2021, the Comelec recorded at least 61 million registered voters for the 2022 elections.
House Speaker Lord Allan Velasco, Majority Leader Ferdinand Martin Romualdez and Minority Leader Joseph Stephen “Caraps” Paduano filed House Bill no. 10261 on Sept. 21 to extend the deadline for voter registration set on Sept. 30.
The extension of voter registration would prevent “massive voter disenfranchisement” due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the House leaders believed.
“At a time of uncertainty, each and every office of the government is tasked to be flexible and alert,” the House leaders stated in the measure.
“To avoid massive disenfranchisement, the [Comelec] must extend the period for voter registration until Oct. 31, 2021. This is also to give leeway to Filipinos whose registration was delayed because of the prevailing circumstances,” they added.
The solons underscored the importance that “every qualified Filipino” be able to elect the leader they want in the upcoming elections.
The conduct of regular elections, they pointed out, is a crucial event in the life of a democratic nation.
“As a basic precept of democracy, each of our kababayans must be given the utmost and widest opportunity to participate in the electoral process,” they said.
They also noted that voter registration would have been an ordinary concern if there had been no ongoing public health crisis.
“But we are living under extraordinary circumstances. The public health crisis has been prolonged and many prospective voters have been forced to delay their registration this year and in 2020,” the solons said.
During Wednesday’s plenary session, the bill was referred to the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms.
Similar measures have previously been filed by other lawmakers.
In August, Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said that voter registration cannot be prolonged as the poll body has to follow its calendar of activities despite several suspensions of its operations due to lockdowns.
It only extended voter registration hours last 23 August, from 8:00 A.M. to 7:00 P.M., Mondays through Fridays; and 8:00 A.M. to 5:00 P.M., Saturdays and holidays.
As of August 2021, the Comelec recorded at least 61 million registered voters for the 2022 elections.
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