Ensuring honest elections for and beyond 2013

 Barely a year into 2013 elections, can we all help to ensure honest elections?

Much experience, reports, and research repeatedly inform us about the thousand and more ways cheaters have resorted to steal the sacred votes of our people. With so millions honest and with millions praying for liberation from such vote- snatching thieves, cannot the same millions get together and unite with honest, dedicated Comelec officials to protect the votes of our citizens?

We welcome the exorcism of the ghost voters from ghost towns and communities. For sure, these ghosts that appear only during election time “exist” all over this country. May the dedicated ghostbusters in Comelec finally get rid of all these unwanted “spirits.”

May Comelec succeed in resurrecting an honest, correct, updated and complete list of truly qualified and authorized voters per polling area. May Comelec, with the assistance of honest, dedicated volunteers, devise a tamper-free list of authentic voters. May Comelec and committed volunteers also devise a solid system of tamper-free ballots that cannot easily or be at all duplicated and used by evil forces later to dishonestly augment the votes of their candidates.

Will it help if Comelec will consider color coding and/or alpha-numerical coding for ballots per locality?

Aside from ensuring protected voters list and ballots, Comelec may also wish to consider a more orderly, more private manner of voting in systematically prepared polling areas.

The search for one’s name and polling area has been a perennial problem that contributes to congestion and chaos in polling places all throughout the country. Can voter’s verification be done away and separately from the area where voters write and cast their votes? Can the voters also be given a more private space to write and to cast their individual votes, preferably away from the curious or interested evil eyes or presence of partisan observers and watchers?

Can Comelec also devise a user-friendly system for voters to confirm their names, receive their ballots, write their choices, drop their ballot by themselves, have their ballots and votes secured from the interference of unauthorized evil schemers? In other words, before elections, can Comelec do rehearsals or pre-election practice with constituents using a very friendly and efficient, quick system of having a voter begin and complete the voting process speedily yet securely, honestly in all polling places throughout the country, especially those notorious for “ghost” and “flying” voters?

Computerization with effective security can certainly go a long way but should there be resistance from Congress or should there be limited budget for this purpose, can the present Comelec chairperson devise brilliant, alternative safety nets to ensure honest elections and tabulation of votes simultaneously installed in all polling places?

Early, diligent preparation and continued vigilance, supported by committed multisectoral partners, especially in known notorious electoral hot spots and turfs can go a very very long secure way towards ensuring the sanctity and freedom of choice.

Surely, if honest and dedicated Filipinos in government and in other sectors come together and unite, a solid system can be mapped out, installed and be implemented to safeguard and protect the sacred vote of each Filipino in every polling place throughout this country.

It is certainly worth another try so that we can proudly pass on to our children and their children’s children and beyond the legacy of honesty and vigilant protection of our sacred right of suffrage.

Best to get together as early as possible though. The evil schemers have been in this “business” and “territory” for decades and are certainly already steps and leaps ahead of the honest Filipinos. In the long run, however, those on God’s side, those on the side of truth and honesty will always come out victorious ultimately!

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