Voter teaches Comelec inspectors a lesson

Screengrab from the Facebook Page of Danny Capili.

Danny Capili just wanted to exercise his right to suffrage. Scared of being cheated of his vote, he studied the automated election process.

So when his vote-counting machine (VCM) was unable to produce his voter’s receipt in full on Monday, he immediately complained to the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI).

In a lengthy Facebook post, Capili detailed his experience with a teacher who did not change the roll of thermal paper, resulting in his voter’s receipt not being printed in full.

No more paper

The government employee later told INQUIRER.net that his receipt was shorter than the usual ones printed and only had the names of his choices for president, vice president and less than half of the senators. Only five names of the senators he voted for were printed clearly. The rest were smudged. His votes for local posts were not printed because the machine ran out of paper.

Capili found out that the teacher assigned to change the roll of thermal paper of the VDM did not do her job.

“Sinabihan ko silang lahat na dapat ay palitan na ang thermal paper kapag may guhit na itong pula kasi ibig sabihin nun eh paubos na ang papel,” he said in his post, adding that he was angered when the teacher said she chose not to do it because there was still paper.

(I told all of them that the thermal paper should be replaced when they see a red line. It means that they are about to run out of paper.)

Protest form

The Parole and Probation Administration employee said he wanted to put into writing his complaint but he was given the wrong form, which was for suspected flying voters.

“Siyempre lalo akong nainis kasi mukhang di alam ng BEI ang mga forms na hawak nila. Ako pa ang pinagbibintangan ngayon na may problem kung nagkataon,” he said.

(Of course I was even more irritated because the BEI didn’t seem to know the forms that they have. If I used that, I might have been accused of being the problem.)

Capili said he remembered Commission on Elections (Comelec) chair Andy Bautista saying that voters can have their receipts printed as evidence of their election protest. However, the BEI prohibited him from doing it.

“In the end I gave up pero not without the evidence na tinanggap nila ang aking contested receipt. Pinapirma ko ulit ang tatlong BEI sa likod ng kopya ng protest form ko bilang ebidensya ko,” he said, posting a photo of his certificate of protest.

(In the end I gave up but not without the evidence that they accepted by contested receipt. I again asked the three BEIs at the back of my protest form as evidence.)

Educated voter

Asked why he is very familiar with the process, he said, “Medyo familiar ako sa proseso as I tried to educate myself by reading online. Kasi di pwedeng tatanga-tanga ka kasi posibleng maloko ka pagdating sa eleksyon.”

(I am somewhat familiar with the process as I tried to educate myself by reading online. Because you can’t be stupid or you may possibly be cheated during the elections.)

Capili pointed out that the problem he encountered was because the teacher assigned to his precinct did not do her job.

The teacher later admitted that she did not change the roll because there was still leftover thermal paper.

The government employee said he was dismayed that it happened to him but was also thankful because he was able to teach the BEIs a lesson.

“They learned the hard way,” he said.

Before voting, he also complained of the inclusion of his deceased father’s name in the list of voters. He said there are many dishonest people in their area and he was afraid that his father’s name would be used for election cheating.

Capili said voters should not remain silent if they witness wrongdoing.

“Ang boto natin is a sacred duty that we perform for the nation. Kung di mo babantayan at lokohin ka, hindi mo fully ma-exercise ang inyong right to suffrage,” he said.

(Our vote is a sacred duty that we perform for the nation. If you will not guard it and you are cheated, you will not be able to fully exercise your right to suffrage.) JN