After knowing that we would have an automated elections this year I was really curious about how was everything going to work? Because mainly Filipinos are people who stick to tradition for quite a long time before they adopt into the new trend, specially our Lolo’s and Lola’s. I really doubted that the counting part of this election would be squeaky clean. And about the campaign part? It looks like our voting system might change but the ways of our politicians in campaigning would NEVER CHANGE, as usual some did vote buying, others even died and others received death threats.
Anyway, on the day of the election we were tasked to get insights on how was the voting during that day or at least get in touch with the environment if we couldn’t get close enough. On that day my classmate and I met for the task, since she is more acquainted here in Tuguegarao, I would really need her company.
We first went to TCES, and the very long line of voters was what we first saw. Next were some residents giving fliers and still selling a candidate to the voters who are still waiting for their turn to vote, others even used children to do the job. Isn’t this considered as campaigning too? Why these people still are permitted to do this? And one more thing, the papers they are giving are just going to waste and their just adding trash to our surroundings, aside from the stickers and tarpaulins they used for their campaign. The place was too crowded here that we weren’t able to get close to any precinct, so we decided to observe outside. The line of people on the streets was really causing traffic that day. A traffic enforcer and the police were there too. I wonder if they noticed the children and women campaigning outside the gate.
Our next stop was TNCS, upon arriving at the gate they group standing there gave us a handful of papers. We noticed a voter’s assistance desk located at the very center of the school, so we decided to conduct a little interview. The desk’s main function was for the voter’s to be able to find their precinct number easily. But alas! The database they were using wasn’t updated, there would certain errors it would either be about the name not being found on the database (usually these persons are newly registered) or the present number on the database isn’t accurate too. Here we managed to get a peek of the inside of a precinct. It was really small and crowded, that it seemed that there was no privacy in voting here.
This day was my first exposure to the environment of national elections; naturally my grandmother and other relatives would make us stay at home. I barely had an idea on how were the processes done, all I knew was about the indelible ink that most would say wasn’t that indelible. All in all it was fun yet tiring (emotionally and physically) to be exposed on such environment. What I really hated was the mess the elections created. A lot of papers were gone to waste, tarpaulins releasing harmful gases when heated are everywhere and not a single one seems to be conscious about the environment/Mother earth. The election of this year might be called to be a step to the betterment of our country but as long as we don’t change our old ways no matter how high tech the voting system we would use if we don’t choose the right one, the money and effort exerted for that machine would be useless.
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