CEBU CITY, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Cebu City will conduct the final testing and sealing of vote-counting machines (VCM) and ballots on May 5, 2022.
Marilou Paredes, the acting election officer of the South District, said it is necessary to test the VCMs for their integrity and reliability so in case there are technical issues, these can be addressed immediately.
“It is important activity kay we will test the functionality of the VCM for the election day. In case nga naay problema sa VCM ato na dayon maresolve,” said Paredes.
She said the days before the elections, the VCMs and ballots will be distributed to precincts.
The South District has 520 clustered precincts while the North District has 444 clustered precincts. Each will have a VCM.
The ballots are already secured at the City Treasurer’s Office (CTO) and will be distributed starting May 5 until May 8.
“We were directed by the Comelec office to check and verify the correctness and quantity of the official ballots stored in the City Treasurer’s Office,” said Paredes.
The digital signature of the voters is also set to go as Cebu is part of the pioneering regions and provinces that will test the digital signature technology.
“I am pleased to announce that [our] digital signature is 80 percent ready na,” she said.
Comelec Cebu City said it is ready for next week’s elections. Precincts are ready to host the elections while makeshift tents were put up in those schools damaged by the recent storms.
Paredes urges the public to maintain peace and order as well as follow health protocols this coming elections.
/bmjo
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