Ampoloquio, bashing teachers does not solve AES glitches – Kontra Daya

Kontra Daya – Southern Mindanao Region

PRESS RELEASE

MAY 10, 2013

DAVAO CITY – District 1 election officer Atty. Aimee Ampoloquio earned another critic as poll watchdog Kontra Daya slammed her bashing statement against the teachers who served as members of the board of election inspectors (BEIs) in Monday’s final testing and sealing (FTS) of PCOS machines here.

University of the Philippines Mindanao professor Aya Ragragio, convener of Kontra Daya-SMR, charged Ampoloquio’s statement as “unethical” and “scapegoating” – shifting the fault of COMELEC’s failure for another Automated Election System (AES) onto the teachers who act as BEIs.

She also urged Ampoloquio to learn to accept criticisms and adopt prompt and needed actions to address the concerns that arose about the inefficiency of the PCOS, the difficulty of the BEI’s and the lack of safeguards for the AES.

“Instead of assessing the validity of the criticisms pertaining to the FTS, calling the teachers ‘stupid’ and ‘forgetful’ simply because they were not confident in handling the PCOS machines and unable to fix the technical glitches, is callous and highly unethical. She is a public servant, and should not mock the teachers who have been at the forefront of every elections, and bear the brunt of violence and fraud that has marked our electoral system,” said Ragragio.

She added that it is the Comelec’s role to train the teachers to be confident in using the PCOS machines.

“The lack of confidence in handling the PCOS is just an indication of lack of knowledge in handling the machine. Some teacher-BEIs reported to Kontra Daya that their two-day training with the Comelec was very limited and not enough to equip them with the necessary skills to ensure that the country’s second automated polls will be successful,” pointed Ragragio.

Ragragio also hit the Comelec for not maximing the past 3 years to ready the teachers.

“The last elections was three years ago. What was the Comelec doing within that span of time?” asked Ragragio who also expressed fears of regretful outcome of the midterm polls, including possible failure of elections.

With just three more days before the elections on Monday, Kontra Daya urged the public to intensify vigilance against possible frauds and violence especially by those who would take advantage of the technical glitches.

“Given the Comelec’s inutility, the best way to secure the elections is through people’s engagement. We should expect the worst and be prepared to take the initiative of guarding our votes. We can help our BEIs should they grapple on election day by reminding them of what to and what not to do. We cannot expect the Comelec to fix in three days what it was not able to put right in three years,” concluded Ragragio. ###

For reference:

Prof. Aya Ragragio

Convener

Kontra Daya – Southern Mindanao Region