Comelec holds special registration for voters

CASTILLANO

IN observance of National Women’s Month celebration, the Commission on Election (Comelec) will be holding a special satellite registration today for women voters.

Comelec provincial supervisor Lionel Castillano said that their central office has issued a resolution requiring highly urbanized cities, including Cebu, Mandaue and Lapu-Lapu to hold the special registration, dubbed the Special Satellite Registration for Women and Girls.

Castillano clarified that male voters can also register during the event, only that women and girls as well as senior citizens, pregnant women and persons with disabilities will be given priority.

Castillano said the activity is also in support of the Magna Carta for Women as well as the Gender and Development program of the Comelec.

Castillano said the special registration will cater to voters aged 15 and up, including those who will vote in the Sangguniang Kabataan elections.

According to Castillano, they were targeting areas near hospitals and medical centers as the venues of the special registration to make the event all-inclusive.

“We want to make it all-inclusive and give those in the health sector the chance to register because they sometimes work even on weekends. At least their management can let them avail of the registration during their breaks, which is 30 minutes at most since it is near to their workplace,” Castillano said in Cebuano.

The one-day event, which will run from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., will be held at Robinsons Cybergate in Cebu City, Mandaue City Sports Complex in Mandaue City and at the Gaisano Grand Mall in Lapu-Lapu City.

Castillano said that Zonta International, a global organization of professionals that seeks to empower women worldwide through service and advocacy, will also assist them during the special registrations.

Meanwhile, with the April 29 registration deadline coming up, Castillano said they will end their off-site registration in the barangays and schools on April 15. Instead, Castillano said they will then be looking for bigger venues in town centers, including malls and municipal complex, to hold the registration.

Castillano stressed that their office is open for registration from Mondays to Saturdays during office hours and even on holidays, except on Holy Thursday and Good Friday.