Poll watchdogs bicker over role in May automated elections

As candidates slug it out to establish themselves for the upcoming elections, two poll watchdogs are likewise struggling for a bigger role in the country’s first ever nationwide automated elections. Specifically, the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) is questioning the petition for accreditation filed by the National Citizens’ Movement for Free Elections (Namfrel) with the Commission on Elections (Comelec). PPCRV chairperson Henrietta de Villa said they are objecting to some of Namfrel’s requests to the poll body, specifically the power to conduct random manual audit. She said this does not mean that they are totally opposed to Namfrel’s petition. “Tinututulan lang namin yung pagbibigay sa kanila ng mga binigay na sa amin ng Comelec (We just don’t want what was already given to us by the Comelec to be also given to them)," De Villa told GMANews.TV in a phone interview. The Comelec last October accredited the PPCRV as its first citizens’ arm for the May 10 elections. Namfrel filed its petition for accreditation last December. Conflict of interest Namfrel spokesman Eric Alvia said the power to conduct random manual audit is best left to them for being an independent body. He said PPCRV is connected with the Comelec as it is a member of the Comelec Advisory Council that is in charge of the poll automation. “Kailangan itong gawin ng mas independent body para walang conflict of interest (This should be done by a more independent body so that there would be no conflict of interest)," he said in a separate phone interview. But De Villa noted that they did not ask the Comelec to give them the responsibility. “Binigay ng Comelec, hindi naman namin hiningi yun (That was given by the Comelec, we did not ask for it)," she said. Comelec Commissioner Gregorio clarified that it’s not the PPCRV that would conduct the manual audit but the election inspectors. He said PPCRV’s role is limited only to heading the committee that would formulate the guidelines for the audit. Talk it out Sarmiento said it would be better for the two parties to straighten their differences through a dialogue. “Pag-usapan na lang (They should talk about it). I think that would be the best for them," he said. De Villa agreed to the idea, saying the PPCRV is “always open for collaboration." “We can make arrangements. Ok lang un, dapat lang lahat mag-bantay (That’s okay, there really should be more watchdogs)," she said. Alvia dismissed their issue with PPCRV as a mere “difference in approach in conducting watchdog tasks." He added that most of the members of the PPCRV had in fact come from Namfrel, including De Villa, who headed Namfrel before she resigned to concentrate on the PPCRV last year. Reliability, history In approving the accreditation of the PPCRV, the Comelec en banc cited the group’s reliability in conducting poll watchdog activities in the 1992, 1995, 1998, 2001, 2004, and 2007 national and local elections. The poll body mandated the PPCRV to conduct massive voters’ education programs and to take part in the random manual audit. It also gave the watchdog access to a copy of the computerized voter’s list as well as the fourth copy of the election returns. Namfrel, meanwhile, was instrumental in exposing numerous irregularities in the 1986 snap elections then President Ferdinand Marcos, who ruled the country for more than two decades. This sparked waves of protests by supporters of then opposition candidate Corazon Aquino that culminated in the historic EDSA People Power revolt that sent the Marcos family into exile and catapulted Mrs. Aquino to the presidency. The Comelec last held a hearing for Namfrel’s accreditation on January 4 and has yet to release a decision. No role for Namfrel? Comelec spokesman James Jimenez said that to be accredited, Namfrel has to define what role it wants to play in the upcoming elections. “Namfrel is traditionally for quick count, but we don’t need to have a quick count with automation," he told GMANewsTV in a separate interview. Alvia, however, said they insist on conducting a parallel count because it’s always better to have a different party verifying the results of the elections. “We’re not after the speed of the results but the accuracy and veracity of the results. We’ve been doing that for the past 27 years now," he said. Jimenez said that at present, the PPCRV is the only accredited citizen’s arm of the Comelec for the upcoming polls. Section 52 of the Omnibus Election Code gives the Comelec the power to enlist non-partisan organizations to assist them in ensuring free, orderly and honest elections. - KBK, GMANews.TV