The long wait for ballot secrecy folders in Isabela town

ILAGAN, Isabela—Teacher Beth Castro wants to go home and get some rest. She has been lining up at Ilagan municipal Hall since 8 a.m. hoping that poll officials will finally distribute to the teachers who will serve as Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs) the election supplies needed for Monday’s automated elections. Ten hours later, Castro is still waiting. Various election supplies, including the ballot secrecy folders, have yet to be delivered from Manila. "Ang sabi nila sa amin 8 a.m., 11 a.m. na di-distribute na pero hangang ngayon nag- aantay kami dito. Nang dumating kami tirik pa yung araw, ngayon palubog na," she said. (They said the ballot secrecy folders will be here in the morning. It’s already nighttime and the delivery has yet to be made.) Lito Magddura has the same concern. A resident of far-flung barangay Sindon Maride, Magddura fears about his and the poll materials' safety.
Safety concerns "Ang tagal nila mag-distribute tapos dadalhin namin yung gamit ng walang police escort delikado at bulubundukin pa naman sa amin. Mahirap na, ok lang kung may security eh," he said. (It’s taking them a long time to distribute. Then we will bring the poll paraphernalia in faraway areas without security escorts.) Castro and Magddura are among the teachers scattered inside the municipal hall, fighting exhaustion, while patiently waiting for the delivery of the secrecy folders, marker pens, and rubber seals—less than 24-hours before the historic first nationwide automated elections take place. Obdulia Gomez, the Commission on Election (Comelec) official in the province, said that the fault is no longer with the local Comelec as they have already informed the polls officials in Manila. She also explained that the delay in the delivery of the secrecy folders was due to the allegation that each folder was overpriced at P360. “Diba they had to change everything again that’s why it is delayed." Gomez said the latest information she received was that the delivery trucks are already near the Santiago City, which is about an hour ride to Ilagan. Ilagan has the most number of barangays in the province. All systems go Meanwhile, provincial election supervisor Manuel Castillo said “it's all systems go" for the automated elections in Isabela—the second largest province in the Philippines. He made the statement after the “successful" testing of Consolidation and Canvassing System laptop held in the provincial capitol on Sunday afternoon. The CCS is a machine that will receive the consolidated electronic poll results, which will then be transmitted to authorized transmission centers in Manila. Castillo, however, he admitted that they have yet to come up with an alternative plan in case the machine's transmission signal becomes unavailable on May 10. —KBK, GMANews.TV