A poll watchdog on Monday reported Filipino voters experiencing several issues on Election Day, including malfunctioning automated counting machines (ACMs) and discrepancies with their Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT)—commonly known as the voter’s receipt.
The Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE) said persistent issues related to accountability remain the top election issues as the election passed its halfway mark.
It cited a Quezon City voter who reported their voter’s receipt showing an overvote for the position of senator, despite using a “kodigo” and being sure that she only voted for 12 candidates. The voter noted this could have been caused by smudging on the ballot caused by ink transferred from its folder.
According to LENTE, the Electoral Board (EB) failed to inform the voters of their right to challenge the voter’s receipt, with similar circumstances being reported in Parañaque, Rizal, and Laguna.
“We remind voters and the media that the proper recourse for any discrepancy found in the voter’s receipt is for the voter to file an Objection. This involves informing the EB of the alleged discrepancy and then signing the back of the voter’s receipt,” LENTE said.
The group also monitored since 7 a.m. on Monday over 60 instances of ACM malfunctions in Metro Manila and across 20 provinces. Namely, these included issues such as ballot rejection, scanner cleaning, and ballot or VVPAT jam.
LENTE likewise documented multiple election offenses related to vote buying, unlawful electioneering, unlawful entry, and illegal assistors across various provinces.
“Reports of illegal assistance by watchers and marshalls continue to come from different parts of the Philippines… The only people allowed to assist voters are relatives within the 4th civil degree of consanguinity or affinity, a household member of the voter who is a person of their confidence, or any member of the EB,” LENTE said.
It also received reports of issues related to the poor quality of election paraphernalia, including sticking of ballots due to their thinness, easily removable indelible ink, problems with the marking pen, and failure of VVPAT printing.
“Given all the focus and resources dedicated to the advancement and deployment of the Philippine automated election system, it bears stressing that basic election materials should also be given proper attention as their quality has an impact on the voters’ participation in the electoral process,” LENTE concluded.