Comelec on track for May 14 polls — Benipayo

Commission on Elections Chairman Alfredo Benipayo said yesterday preparations for the May 14 congressional and local elections are "on track" despite the publicized bickering among Comelec commissioners.

"I don’t think there’ll be any problem. We’re on track," Benipayo said, adding that some Comelec commissioners are trying hard to smoothen the difficulties caused by internal rifts.

Benipayo said the Comelec has started shipping out election materials, including the indelible ink and ballot boxes, to its offices throughout the country.

But official ballots and election returns are still secured with the poll body’s designated printers and would be the last to be sent out to prevent loss or manipulation.

"We’re not supposed to ship them ahead of time because these might get lost or manipulated," Benipayo stressed, adding that the Comelec employee caught trying to sell official ballots has already been dismissed from the service.

The Comelec employee detailed with the Comelec’s printing committee was earlier accused of selling official ballots for P25 each inside the National Printing Office (NPO) in Quezon City.

The incident helped to further strain relations between Benipayo and Commissioner Luzviminda Tancangco, who chairs the printing committee.

But Benipayo said other Comelec commissioners, like Commissioner Mehol Sadain, are working hard to preserve the integrity of the poll body despite alleged irregularities that emerged in recent months.

Benipayo was apparently referring to incidents that allegedly involved Tancangco, whom career Comelec officials have blamed for supposedly causing several problems in recent months.

Comelec officials, including former Chairman Harriet Demetriou, have blamed Tancangco for failing to implement a public information drive on the continuing registration of voters despite the availability of funds for the purpose.

The failed information drive resulted in the disenfranchisement of some 4.5 million first-time voters.

Comelec officials said Tancangco is also responsible for the Comelec’s precinct mapping project, involving some P280 million, which remains unaccomplished.

The absence of precinct mapping capability was identified as among the problems that prevented the Comelec from holding a special registration for some 4.5 million disenfranchised first-time voters.

Tancangco has also been accused of twice trying to bring out plates for the printing of election returns from the premises of Ernest Printing Corp., a private firm in Caloocan City.

Ballots are being printed at the NPO but election returns and other paraphernalia have been farmed out to Ernest Printing Corp.

Comelec sources said Tancangco feels that Benipayo is responsible for leaking these irregularities to the media and has allegedly coopted other Estrada appointees to the poll body to vote against Benipayo.

But, Comelec officials said, even Estrada appointees foresee that the irregularities, if found to be true, are unjustifiable and have designated "neutral" commissioners to oversee duties assigned to Tancangco.