Chaos mars first day of registration; media blamed

CHAOS marred the first day of the registration of candidates for the 2016 general elections at the Commission on Elections (Comelec) central office in Intramuros, Manila, Monday—and journalists were responsible for it.

But they didn’t get away with it, getting reprimanded by Comelec Chair Andres Bautista and by the poll watchdog’s spokesperson, James Jimenez, for their disorderly conduct.

The Comelec has designated an area for the filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) and a separate area where journalists may interview the candidates, a change from previous election years when filing and interviews were held in just one place.

It was a bid for order that failed when Vice President Jejomar Binay, presidential candidate of the opposition United Nationalist Alliance (UNA), and his running mate, Sen. Gregorio Honasan II, arrived to file their COCs and were set upon by a scrum of journalists.

‘Settle down!’

Amid the general confusion, Bautista was seen blocking the lens of cameramen to prevent them from taking video, and telling reporters not to conduct interviews on the fly.

Jimenez grabbed the microphone and scolded the journalists.

“Clear the aisle to make way for the candidates. Is this the first time you witness something like this?” Jimenez said. “Clear the hall! Settle down!”

Binay and Honasan signed the “Integrity Pledge” onstage and left without giving interviews.

Jimenez later said: “What happened earlier, the pushing and shoving was understandable considering the limitations of our new format, but we will do some fine-tuning to prevent similar incidents from happening again.”

Companion rule

Jimenez also said the Comelec relaxed its three-companion rule for every candidate.

He said candidates could now bring more than three family members when they file their COCs.

“We allow them to bring more people but they have to be members of the immediate family,” he said.

Jimenez said the procedures needed fine-tuning because people who were not candidates managed to enter the Comelec building.

“We noticed that some individuals pretended to be candidates just to get in,” he added.

Jimenez said the Comelec had received favorable comments from candidates on the filing process.