Saturday, April 21, 2012

Rules on Detainee Registration and Voting

Rules on Detainee Registration and Voting Set

To implement the right of suffrage of persons deprived of their liberty, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) laid down the rules and regulations on detainee registration and voting in connection with the May 13, 2013 National and Local Elections thru Comelec Resolution No. 9371.
Detainees who shall be eighteen (18) years of age on the day of election and/or committed inside the detention center for at least six (6) months immediately preceding election day may register as a voter. Detainees who are already registered may apply for transfer of registration record.
For this purpose, satelite registrations shall be conducted in the detention centers/jails by the concerned Election Officer (EO). The Election Officer shall coordinate first with the Jail Warden in the Provincial/City/Municipal Jail or other Correctional/Rehabulitation/Detention Centers to determine qualified applicant detainees and to ensure maximum security of Comelec personnel and the Voters Registration Machine (VRM) to be used.
On election day, detaineed who can vote are those who are registered and whose registration record is not transferred/deactivated/cancelled or deleted. They can vote either through special polling place inside the jails or through escorted voting.
Special polling places shall be established in detention centers/jail facility with at least 50 registered detainee voters which shall be manned by the Special Board of Elections Inspectors (SBEI).
If there is no special polling place established in the detention center/jail or if the detainee voter is a registered voter of the municipality/city other than the town/city of detention, the detainee voter may avail of escorted detainee voting provided that they are able to obtain court orders allowing them to vote in the polling place where they are registered and that it is logically feasible on the part of the jail/prison administration to escort the detainee voter. Reasonable measures shall be undertaken to secure the safety of detainee voters, prevent their escape and ensure public safety.
During the campaign period, candidates shall also be allowed to campaign inside the detention centers subject to the existing rules and regulations of the BJMP and the COMELEC.
Detainee refers to persons who are: (1) confined in jail, formally charged for any crime/s and awaiting/under trial; or (2) serving sentence of imprisonment for less than one (1) year; or (3) whose conviction of a crime involving disloyalty to the duly constituted government or any crime against national security is on appeal.
Posted by at

VOTERS' PLEDGE

I am a Responsible and Principled Citizen.

I will educate myself and others about the issues at hand so that my vote is a meaningful and relevant exercise of my right of suffrage.

I pledge to vote for candidates who will abide by the duly constituted rules on campaigning because I understand that those who refuse to obey the law in the little things are not likely to obey the law in the more important things;

I pledge to vote for candidates who, by word and action, renounce violence, coercion, vote-buying, and corruption as means for getting elected;

I pledge to vote for the candidates who listen to their constituents and are responsive to the needs and aspirations of those they seek to represent;

I pledge to vote as my conscience dictates in all elections.

I make these promises freely and upon my honor.

(This Voter Pledge was read at the Unity Walk of 13 January 2013, by COMELEC Commissioner Elias R. Yusoph)

SOURCE: NAMFREL