TEACHERS who performed election duties were asked yesterday to wait a while longer for their honoraria from the Commission on Elections (Comelec).
Provincial Comelec supervisor Eliseo Labaria said he received complaints from at least three areas where teachers were unable to withdraw money using specially issued automated teller machine (ATM) cards from the Land Bank of the Philippines.
“The Comelec has already transferred the money to the banks. But the money probably hasn’t been uploaded to the accounts,” he told reporters at the Capitol yesterday.
Some 12,198 cash cards were distributed starting last Sunday to teachers in the province who served as the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI) in their respective towns or cities during Election Day last May 9.
Instead of outright cash, teachers will be able to claim their honoraria through Landbank ATMs.
Labaria said those who are based in towns on Camotes and Bantayan islands were given cash.
Others who specified other savings accounts in their payrolls weren’t given Landbank cash cards. Labaria said the money is already there and they just have to wait.
“We don’t have control over that. That’s the bank’s jurisdiction already,” Labaria said.
Some teachers in the towns of Ronda, Minglanilla and Mandaue City also failed to withdraw after their ATMs did not dispense money.
Instead, they withdrew their honoraria over the counter through a bank teller.
The chairman of the BEI is entitled to receive P4,500 while his or her support staff will receive P3,000 each.
Each BEI is also set to receive P2,000 as an increase that was approved by Comelec en banc in January, bringing their total compensation for poll duties to P6,500.
This doesn’t include the additional honoraria to be allocated by local government units where the teachers are based.
In Cebu City, each teacher will receive P1,500.
But Cebu City Hall has yet to start deliberations on their budget this year which includes the honoraria of the teachers among other items.