Jun 272013
 
The Commission on Elections will release the results of the Random Manual Audit (RMA) of 234 precincts in the May 13, 2013 midterm polls on Friday, June 28, at 10 a.m.

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez made the announcement in a post on his Twitter account Thursday.

RMA committee head Henrietta de Villa hopes that the findings of the audit would convince those who are skeptical of the results of the recent polls.

“We hope it helps since that is the purpose of the Random Manual Audit. It’s just like the final examination of the conduct of the polls if it was accurate and credible,” said De Villa, who is also chairperson of elections watchdog Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV).
 
An RMA, which checks for discrepancies between the manual count and the automated count, is required under Section 24 of Republic Act 9369 (Automated Elections System Law), which states that in automated elections, there shall be a random manual audit in one precinct per congressional district, randomly chosen by the Comelec in each province and city. — BM, GMA News

May 052013
 
PPCRV: 350,000 volunteers ready for poll duty

With just one more week to go before the May 13 elections, a Church-based poll watchdog group on Sunday declared that 350,000 of its volunteers—including 70,000 frontliners—are ready for poll watching duties. The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting said it is finalizing preparations to enhance the visibility of the 70,000 frontliners who will be assigned to help desks and polling places. “Okay ang deployment ng volunteers. Ang aming pinag-abalahan ngayon nakakuha kami ng materials, pero hanggang ngayon sourcing ako sa T-shirt. Nakaprint na ng 50,000 shirts sa kagandahang loob ng donor, nagsisigasig pa ako makakuha ng 20,000,” PPCRV chairperson Henrietta de Villa said in an interview on dzBB radio. She said the 70,000 volunteers should be wearing PPCRV shirts and IDs as they have to enhance their visibility at help desks and polling places. The PPCRV is a deputized citizens’ arm of the Commission on Elections for the May 13 elections. De Villa also downplayed the effect of some Catholic dioceses’ cutting their working ties with her group, saying there are still many volunteers willing to work with the PPCRV. Volunteers being ‘pirated’ De Villa also said that some volunteers are being “pirated” by political parties for the elections, but that the group is not worried. “Siyempre doon may bayad [pero] ako hindi sumasama ang loob ko. Sabi ko mabuti na lang naka-training sa amin ang tamang pagbantay hindi lang sa pamamagitan ng isang technical poll watching consideration. Pati ang values meron kami nioon sa training,” she said. De Read More …

Apr 022013
 
PPCRV: Lipa archdiocese's 'exit' won't affect poll preparations

The Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting downplayed on Wednesday the Lipa (Batangas) archdiocese’s move to cut off ties with it, saying such development will not affect its preparations for the May 13 elections. In a radio interview, PPCRV chairperson Henrietta de Villa said it is “business as usual” as far as voter education and vote guarding are concerned. “Hindi ko tinatrataong balakid yan, kailangan magtrabaho mas masugid (I do not treat what happened as a stumbling block. We just need to work harder),” De Villa said in an interview on dzBB radio. “Business as usual,” she added. On Tuesday, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines said the Lipa Archdiocese cut ties with the PPCRV, but said it will still work for clean polls. The CBCP noted this development came two weeks after the CBCP National Secretariat for Social Action (Nassa) cut ties with PPCRV and said it will work with Namfrel. De Villa said one of the supposed reasons for the Lipa archdiocese’s move was that the fourth copy of the election returns for the PPCRV will be sealed. She said she explained that volunteer poll watchers will be able to see the contents of the ER. “At sine-seal para ang courier pagdala sa amin baka ma-tamper… para makasiguradong hindi napalitan yan,” De Villa said. Business interests? But De Villa admitted she was hurt over reported innuendos linking some members of the PPCRV to alleged business interests in the counting machines to be used in the May 13 polls. Read More …