Comelec headquarters in Intramuros, Manila.
MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is planning to establish satellite prison registration sites, according to Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) spokesperson Jail Supt. Xavier Solda on Thursday.
In September, the Supreme Court allowed qualified persons deprived of liberty (PDL) to register and vote.
“Doon sa recent guidelines ng Comelec, mag-establish kasi ng mga special satellite registration centers sa jail facilities natin, so ang Comelec po mismo ang pupunta sa mga pasilidad ng BJMP para isagawa ang special registration,” said Solda in an interview over Teleradyo.
(In the recent guidelines of Comelec, special satellite registration centers will be established in our jail facilities. So Comelec will go to BJMP facilities to conduct a special registration).
However, Solda noted that the commission is overwhelmed with its current workload, as more Filipinos are attempting to register to vote in Comelec’s offices.
“Marami pang kababayan tayo na sa mga unang araw ay nariyan na sa Comelec offices, kaya ang ginawa natin, dahil limitado nga po ang manpower ng Comelec at resources nila, yung BJMP wardens natin ang pumupunta sa mga local Comelec offices para mag coordinate regarding dun sa schedule ng kanilang pag punta, para maayos din natin,” stated Solda.
(A lot of our fellow countrymen, in the first few days, are there in the Comelec offices, so what we did, because Comelec has limited manpower and resources, the BJMP wardens will go to local Comelec offices to coordinate the schedule of going to facilities so that we can organize it).
According to Solda, it needs to be coordinated with the return of face-to-face visits, as the movement of people and the allotment of spaces need to be accounted for.
The BJMP had recently allowed physical visitations again after two years. Those visiting must follow guidelines set by the facilities, including prior coordination with jail personnel, and COVID-19 vaccinations or negative RT-PCR/antigen results.