Timely electoral news long before 2025 midterm vote

WITH ELECTIONS some three years in the future, two events call media and voters to think on the exercise, its problems and its perils. The Commission on Elections (Comelec) early this month held the first ever summit to discuss urgent change and reform of the national electoral system. Last week, the same Comelec responded to a petition filed in the Supreme Court in November 2022 protesting the quick count of the 2022 presidential vote. Recall the incredible speed with which the Comelec released regional counts in the evening of May 9. 

Both developments reflect the growing dissatisfaction with the conduct of the national exercise. At face value, the two effectively expose the flaws in our electoral exercise. 

So far, the summit has received scant coverage from the media. And journalists will probably have to rely on lawyers and other experts to assess the Supreme Court’s order to Comelec. 

The dialogue of stakeholders convened by the Comelec aimed to establish consensus for change and reform of the electoral process. 

Comelec targets the Omnibus Code of the Philippines (Batas Pambansa 881) for specific amendments. Dating back to 1992, the law has through the decades incorporated three other laws to provide for synchronized elections and other executive orders. Two reports were posted in advance of the summit to assess what the public could expect from the meeting. (See, “What Comelec expects to achieve in 3-day election summit | Rappler;” “Comelec holds three-day national election summit | ANC“)

The Inquirer editorial on March 21 provided the most comprehensive discussion, noting the desired amendments described by Comelec Chair Jorge Garcia and Spokesperson Rex Laudiangco. 

The need to replace ageing vote counting machines (VCM) is a priority that seems to have found favor with President Marcos, who Garcia quoted to have said: “if the machines really need to be replaced, so be it.” 

Inquirer reviewed the Comelec’s suggestions for more critically framed measures to change the law: the expansion of coverage on vote-buying and fraud, advancing the time-frame for campaigning after filing of candidacy, clearer definition of election expenses, as well as the stricter vetting of party-list candidates for their representation of the marginalized and unrepresented. 

All of the above should be hailed by anyone who has watched the slow but sure capture of elections by entrenched powerful forces in the country. The editorial cited the agreement of the election watchdog, Legal Network for Truthful Elections (Lente) with the proposed changes but pointed out that these amendments must be passed this year, as politicians are likely to shift to campaign mode in 2024, based on old rules. 

Most of the media were cool to the event, even when its size with 400 CSOs registered and its cost at ten million could have easily compelled public attention. At the end of three days, Comelec said it submitted its report to the president but at press time, no copy of the document has been available to the media, even to reporters who attended. Comelec website carried no text nor executive summary of its recommendations. A video of the press briefing after the summit was of such poor quality, it would have discouraged anyone searching for information. 

But the media need not wait for official copy to report these concerns. The expressed dissatisfaction over our campaigns and elections should drive journalists to scrutinize the law that has allowed all kinds of loopholes for politicians to exploit. Reports should assist citizens who can, with or without official sanction and approval, press Congress to do their duty. The reforms so far mentioned are not so complex or complicated as these are based on common sense. The summit was on the right track in establishing consensus; participants should continue the dialogue with the public to galvanize the political will for change.

The challenge for reporters is to make elections a gut issue, tell stories about how elections have made a difference in the past with evidence of how sound policies and good government produced benefits, causing poverty to decline and hunger to diminish. Sadly, the pandemic has overturned many of these gains. Now more than ever, electing politicians should not be reduced to a popularity contest or the capacity to purchase votes.  

News can help the transformation, providing the kind of news and commentary that projects the vote as the single most powerful action a citizen makes. 

Meanwhile, reporters should track how Comelec responds to the High Court about the speed of the vote count in 2022.