In anticipation of this year’s Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) polls, Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte emphasized the significance of electoral reforms to prevent electoral cheating and ensure the democratic processes’ efficiency.
At the National Election Summit in Pasay City, she recalled her previous experience leading volunteer and support groups in five elections, and reminded the League of Municipal Mayors not to use teachers to win elections but to earn the community’s trust.
Despite the summit’s success in bringing election stakeholders together to address gaps in the electoral process, the Vice President lamented that vote-buying and voting twice remained prevalent issues in many areas of Mindanao.
She attributed this to the absence of a national voter database, allowing voters to participate in multiple barangays and towns.
To safeguard the sanctity of the votes, Duterte urged the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to consider modernizing the voting process through fingerprint, face, and eye scanning technologies, moving away from the traditional shading or writing of names on ballots.
As Education chief, she highlighted the need to incorporate voter education into the K-12 program and protect teachers serving as electoral board members.
She also recognized the difficulties public school teachers faced when fulfilling their election duties, calling on law enforcement to ensure their safety against threats from “warlords” and “private armies” in remote areas.
Source: Inside Politico | #InsidePolitico | March 10, 2023