12 senators proclaimed Wednesday night—Comelec

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is expected to proclaim all 12 winning senators by early Wednesday night.

Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said Tuesday that Comelec, sitting as the national board of canvassers (NBOC), was expected to proclaim those who made it to the “Magic 12” if there are no “glitches” in the 11th and 12th winning slots.

“(On Wednesday at) 7 p.m.—exactly 48 hours (after the voting ended), we expect to proclaim the senators. All the senators, that is what we expect,” Brillantes said at a media briefing at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City.

Brillantes said the NBOC might send invitations on Wednesday morning to the winning senatorial candidates for their proclamation in the evening.

“Maybe tomorrow morning, before lunch. We might be able to send invitations,” he said at a press conference at the PICC where the official votes were being canvassed.

The NBOC resumed its official canvassing at 10:23 a.m. Tuesday at the PICC with 75 percent of the precincts submitting unofficial results.

“We are still receiving reports from the transmission since last night. So far, it’s OK. The latest is 75 percent (of the results from the precincts) have already been transmitted,” he said.

The Comelec is expected to receive a total of 304 certificates of canvass (COCs), including 198 from Philippine diplomatic posts abroad for the overseas absentee voting (OAV).

As of 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, the NBOC had officially opened the COCs from Guimaras, Parañaque, Mandaluyong and Romblon for canvassing.

“Every time we get five (COC), we will come out with  partial, unofficial results. So, let’s see if we can refresh the (partial but official) results every hour,” said Commissioner Christian Robert Lim.

He said the official results were trickling into the NBOC since, under the law, these have to go first through the “ladderized process” of canvassing at the municipal and the provincial level. The unofficial results from the precincts go directly to the Comelec main server.

Asked if 12 senators could be proclaimed by Wednesday night, Lim said: “We have agreed that we’re going on shifts. There will be commissioners 24 hours because we expect the (results) to come in until morning.”

“So, we were given assignments. I got the 12 a.m. to 7 a.m. shift. We will be able to monitor the progression of those that come in so there will be a constant update,” he added.

Lim said the Philippine Consul General in Hong Kong was also expected to arrive at the PICC to submit the results of the OAV in the former Crown colony.

He said OAV results were not electronically transmitted. The results are “burned into a CD” by Filipino diplomats abroad and then submitted to the NBOC.

“The consuls will bring it. They will fly in and bring the CD. That is what we will load manually,” Lim said.