Comelec urges Congress to set earlier canvassing for president, VP race

With the canvassing of results for the senatorial and party-list races progressing smoothly, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Wednesday said that Congress should schedule the canvassing of results for the presidential and vice presidential contests earlier. "I see nothing that prevents them from doing it earlier so they should be able to do that," Comelec spokesman James Jimenez told reporters in a chance interview. The Comelec, sitting as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC), will consolidate the votes and proclaim the winners for the senatorial and party-list races. Winners are expected to be proclaimed by Friday, May 14, Comelec Commissioner Gregorio Larrazabal said. On the other hand, a joint session of the outgoing Congress, sitting as the NBOC, will serve as the canvassing board for the position of president and vice president. They are set to convene on May 31, almost three weeks after the senators and party-list representatives have already been declared. But Jimenez admitted that Congress cannot be compelled to follow Comelec’s suggestion. He likewise said that it is up to the Congress as sitting NBOC to decide what method it wishes to use in canvassing. "That is their prerogative. If they want to do it slower, if they want to use different methods for the meantime, we’re perfectly fine with that," he said. "They formulate their own rules of canvass. Right now, we don't know whether they will use our automated system or they will opt to use the Certificates of Canvass (COC) that will be brought to them," he added. The poll body is currently using an electronic canvassing system to process and consolidate all the COC from the Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBC). The NBOC will base its proclamation on the COCs sent by the PBC, which will receive COCs from the city and municipal board of canvassers. On Wednesday, the NBOC came out with partial canvassed results where the leading senatorial candidate is Senator Jinggoy Estrada. The tally was based on 8.33 percent of the certificates of canvass (COC) to be sent by the Provincial Board of Convassers (PBC). - GMANews.TV