Comelec Say Winning Senators Might Be Known Three Days After Elections

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said the proclamation of winning senators may be close to the announcement made in the 2013 polls.

Comelec Spokesperson James Jimenez noted that the names of the new lawmakers may be known three days after Election Day.

“In my estimates, we will not be far from the 72 hours (in 2013),” he said.

In the midterm elections, the first six winning senators were proclaimed three days after the elections while with the next three proclaimed a day later and the final three the next day.

On the other hand, Jimenez added that it was more important for them to have credible and transparent results in the May 9 polls than beating the previous records in proclaiming winning candidates at the soonest possible time.

“We are not looking at any previous performance as a hard target. We are looking at previous performance as benchmarks to improve upon. If we add more procedures or change procedures and they end up being a little more complex or complicated or similar even, that all goes into the determination of whether or not the results are credible,” he said.

Jimenez added, “What’s important is that the procedures that we adopt are shown to be credible and are shown to be giving the Comelec and the process the flexibility it requires to address certain problems.”

The poll body official said that automation does not always have to mean having speedy results but it will question the results.

“Remember that automation is not just about speed up, speed up. It’s about providing the public a better alternative to what we had before. And if we are now fine tuning automation and if you need to take a hit in some areas so you can boost other areas, I think you should look at it holistically,” he added. (PNA) RMA/FGP/EDS