Election Officer of the Commission on Elections (Comelec)-Cotabato City Atty. Norpaisa Paglala-Manduyog affirmed the commission’s preparedness for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Election (BSKE) on Monday, October 30, 2023. She called on the voters to come out and vote for their preferred candidate. (Michael Camsa/BIO)
COTABATO CITY—The Commission on Elections (Comelec) Cotabato City assured the public of its readiness for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Election (BSKE) on Monday, October 30, and encouraged citizens to cast their vote on the said day.
The pronouncement was made publicly during a press conference on Wednesday, Oct. 25, organized by the Bangsamoro Information Office (BIO), where Cotabato City Election Officer Atty. Norpaisa Paglala-Manduyog addressed members of the press.
The Comelec official assured that despite some unwanted election-related events reported a few days before the election, candidates and their supporters have been adhering to the rules and regulations imposed by the commission.
“Ang atin pong mga kandidato pati naman po ang kanilang mga supporters, sa tingin ko naman po ay proper naman po na sumusunod sila doon sa ipinapatupad nating rules and regulation,” the lawyer’s response to the media when asked on Comelec’s assessment of the election environment.
[Our candidates, as well as their supporters, in my opinion, are following the rules and regulations that we are implementing properly.]
Furthermore, the official highlighted Comelec’s strengthened coordination with the security sectors to ensure the safety of the voting public and encouraged everyone to cast their votes on election day, stressing the importance of exercising the constitutional right to suffrage and the right to choose barangay officials.
“Nananawagan po kami sa lahat ng botante na lumabas po tayo at tayo po ay bumoto,” Manduyog said.
[We are calling on all voters to come out and cast their votes.]
To facilitate a smooth voting process, she explained that members of the security forces will be stationed in polling precincts, barriers will be set up to manage traffic, and a voters’ assistant desk will be available to address election-related queries.
In preparation for the election on Monday, the commission had already activated its online precinct finder. The public is encouraged to check https://precinctfinder.comelec.gov.ph/voter_precinct to find their assigned polling place.
On election day, voters must bring their voter’s ID or any valid proof of identification.
Based on the latest Comelec data, there are more than 2.5 million registered voters for the barangay election and around one million eligible voters for the Sangguniang Kabataan election in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
The region has a total of 16,107 precincts for the barangay and 15,886 precincts for the Sangguniang Kabataan, spread across 1,235 voting centers in six provinces, four cities, and 116 municipalities in the region. (Abdullah Matucan/BIO)
