The Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Negros Oriental on Thursday reported that 12 vote counting machines and three Secure Digital (SD) cards were found defective during the final testing and sealing (FTS) of vote counting machines (VCMs) in the entire province of Negros Oriental.

Lawyer Lionel Marco Castillano, the Comelec-Negros Oriental provincial election supervisor-designate, told the Philippine News Agency that some of the defective VCMs were reported in this capital, Canlaon City, and Vallehermoso, although the final list will be released later after all towns and cities have finished their FTS.

Castillano is thankful, however, that they received from the central office also on Thursday 26 contingency VCMs that would be used to replace defective ones.

The defective ones will be sent to Cebu for repair while the SD cards will have to be reconfigured here by information technology (IT) technicians.

Another round of FTS will be held over the weekend in areas where original VCMs were found defective, Castillano said.

Meanwhile, he reminded voters to observe health protocols as they flock to the voting precincts on Monday.

Castillano also said both vaccinated and unvaccinated individuals are allowed to vote, contrary to rumors spread through social media that only those who were inoculated against the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) are allowed to cast their ballots.

He appealed to the people to wear face masks to avoid the spread of the virus.

“Face shields, meanwhile, are not mandatory, however, for those who have comorbidities or are senior citizens, I suggest that they wear one for further protection,” he said in mixed English and Cebuano.

Voting schedule is from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. (PNA)