Lawyer Lionel Marco Castillano, Cebu’s Provincial Election Supervisor. | CDND File Photo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — The offices of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Cebu will be operating at a reduced capacity as it resumes voter registration on Tuesday, September 1, 2020.
From serving around 200 to 300 clients per day prior to the pandemic, Cebu Provincial Election Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano said they will now limit the number of persons that will be catered to at the different Comelec offices here to a maximum of 100 in the metro cities and up to 50 in the towns.
Safety precaution
Castillano also assured that their offices made the necessary preparations for the resumption of the voter’s registration on Tuesday.
The health offices of the respective towns and cities in Cebu province had already inspected the set up of the Comelec offices in their respective areas to ensure adherence to health protocols.
Aside from having thermal scanners and ensuring the availability of disinfectant alcohol and foot baths, they will also require clients to fill out health declaration forms for use in contact tracing in case one of them is found to have the novel coronavirus.
Despite the resumption of the voter registration, Castillano advised the public not to rush in going to the Comelec offices if the need to register or claim their voter’s certificate is not urgent.
The voter registration will continue for a period of one year or until September of 2021, in time for the 2020 presidential elections.
Online booking
Castillano said they are also employing online appointment bookings through the respective Facebook pages of the Comelec offices in the towns and cities to limit the number of persons that they will have to accommodate at a given time.
Comelec Cebu offices are using the booking feature of their respective Facebook pages to limit the number of personnel that will be visiting their offices daily.
The Comelec official, however, clarified that they will still cater to walk-in clients considering that not everyone may have access to the internet but will prioritize those who have booked online appointments.
“Dili pod nato pasudlon ang atong mga kliyente gawas kung kuhaan na sila sa ilang biometrics. Kung tan-awon nimo, mga gamay ang mga opisina unya sirado kaayo. Mao na nga nagpatuman mi sa online appointment,” Castillano said.
(We will also not allow our clients to enter the office unless it is already time to capture their biometrics. If we look at it, our offices are small and very enclosed that is why we are implementing this online appointment.)
Castillano added that they will only be accepting registrants from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. on weekdays to give time for the disinfection of the office from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.
“Mahug ni nga mag-reduced capacity mi kay ang opisina 8 [a.m.] to 3 [p.m.] ra kay ang 3 to 5 [p.m.] disinfection man na namo nga oras. Everyday, mag-disinfect ang mga election officers para sa safety nila ug sa mga kliyente nato,” Castillano added.
(We will be operating at a reduced capacity since the office hours will only be from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. because our disinfection is set from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Our election officers conduct disinfection every day for their safety and for the safety of our clients.) / dcb