Senators are urging for the swift passage of a measure filed by Senator Sonny Angara seeking to enhance the accessibility of senior citizens and persons with disabilities (PWDs) when voting during elections.
Senator Christopher Lawrence Go assured on Tuesday that he will support Angara’s Senate Bill No. (SBN) 777 to give senior citizens and PWDs the privilege in exercising their right to suffrage.
“Tulad ng absentee voting ng OFWs [overseas Filipino workers], bigyan natin sila ng tsansa na maunang makaboto lalong-lalo na yung ating mga senior citizens, PWDs. Huwag natin silang pahirapan sa panahon na nagsisiksikan diyan (Like the absentee voting for OFWs, let us give them the chance to vote early especially our senior citizens, PWDs. Let us not burden them like when people crowd during elections),” Go said during his visit to fire victims in Mandaluyong City.
“Ang importante po dito ma-exercise nila yung karapatan nilang bumoto na komportable naman sila at hindi sila nahihirapan dahil alam ko na marami din po sa kanila ang gusto ring lumabas at bumoto (The important thing here is they can exercise their right to vote comfortably. I know many of them want to go out and vote),” he added.
During a hearing conducted by the Senate Committee on Electoral Reforms on Monday, Senator Imee Marcos stressed the urgency of passing the measure before the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in October.
Marcos said passing the law before the Senate recess on March 23 will give the Commission on Elections (Comelec) ample time to install “assistive devices” in voting precincts and provide shuttle services to and from polling places during the BSKE.
“The present lack of facilities and modes of access will disenfranchise thousands upon thousands of voters,” she said. “Let’s make the BSKE’s postponement from last December worth it,” she said.
Marcos filed SBN 1160 in August last year to expand the coverage of Filipinos qualified for early voting, including health workers on duty on election day, hospitalized persons, internally displaced persons due to calamities or local conflict, and OFWs repatriated for reasons beyond their control.
“The BSKE will be conducted manually, so the supplemental budget for additional work hours also has to be determined soon,” Marcos noted.
SBN 1160 also requires the installation of assistive devices at voting centers, like ramps, railing, sidewalks, sufficient signage and lighting, as well as candidates’ lists in braille.
Every voting center must also provide a designated polling place for the exclusive use of seniors, PWDs, and pregnant women with “no prior manifestation” necessary for them to avail of the said facility.
The Comelec will also be required to provide a system of shuttle services for these vulnerable sectors to and from voting centers. (PNA)
Photo credit: Facebook/comelec.ph