DUMAGUETE CITY – Negros Oriental Provincial Election Officer Atty. Edi Aba said the Commission on Elections (Comelec) can come up with a resolution for the utilization of ballots that were supposed to be used in this year’s barangay elections so it will not cost the government additional expenses in the forthcoming Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) and Barangay Elections.
Aba stressed it will be a waste of government money if the printed ballots are to be shredded and new ones are printed instead.
Aside from spending about PHP400 million for the printing of ballots for verification and preparation, the government will have to spend millions of pesos for the shredding alone.
Meanwhile, with three days left in the continuing registration for the May 2018 elections, Dumaguete City election officer Atty. Gildu Agoncillo is still hopeful they will be able to register 1,000 new voters.
To date, the local Comelec office only has 525 new voters for both the SK and barangay polls.
Agoncillo said the last day of the continuing registration will be held at the Quezon Park on Nov. 30 for convenience and easy access to first-time voters.
Of the 525 new registrants, 98 are 15-17 years old and 279 are new voters, while 65 are for reactivation, 33 for reactivation with correction, and 50 for correction of entries.
Agoncillo stressed there will be no more extension of the registration period because of the six-month requirement before a registered voter can cast his vote in the barangay where he is registered.
However, in December, another continuing registration may be scheduled for the 2019 local and national elections. (Mary Judaline Partlow/PNA)
