BAGUIO CITY(PIA) — The Commission on Election (COMELEC) shared the innovations undertaken to bring more Filipinos to register and exercise their right to vote and in helping in choosing the righteous leaders that will serve their community and the country.
COMELEC-Cordillera Regional Election Director Julius Torres, in the Kapihan sa Bagong Pilipinas on Tuesday (Nov. 5), said that through the initiative of COMELEC Chairperson George Erwin Garcia, the Register Anywhere Program or RAP made registration inclusive.
Designated RAP areas were set in all capital towns and highly urbanized cities to accept and process voters registration even if the applicants do not live or reside in the area. Their registration would be forwarded to the COMELEC office where they will vote for the 2025 National and Local Election (NLE), Torres explained.
In the 10 satellite RAP activities that COMELEC-CAR conducted in the different provinces, a total of 2,112 voters have registered and many of them are not from region.
Torres also shared that the provincial election officers were mandated to conduct satellite registration down to the barangays especially in the far-flung areas.
For this year, COMELEC-CAR, through its provincial election offices in Abra, Apayao, Benguet (which includes Baguio City), Ifugao, Kalinga and Mountain Province conducted 1,421 satellite registration activities.
With these innovations, Torres reported a noticeable jump in new voter registration across the region totaling to 41,695, compared to 28,873 in 2023. Voters registration for the 2025 NLE ended on September 30. 2024.
Along with the strengthened COMELEC – CAR voters registration and education programs and activities,Torres called on the citizens to support in ensuring a peaceful, orderly and credible 2025 NLE.
“Ang eleksyon hindi po ito pinatatakbo ng COMELEC alone, kailangan po namin ang tulong ninyo para maging maayos and eleksyon natin next year,” Torres said.
(The COMELEC is not running the election alone, we need your help to ensure an orderly election next year.)
With the recorded low turnout of voters in the past elections, Torres is also calling on the Cordillera voters to go out and exercise their right to vote, and have their voice be heard in choosing the right leaders at the local and national levels.
COMELEC-CAR data show a 79.88 percent voter’s turnout in the 2022 NLE and 73.70 percent voter’s turnout during the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan election.(JDP/CCD-PIA CAR)
