Oh yes! I am proud to be counted! I am now one of the filipino voters to have experienced the first ever automated national and local election and I am now part of the Philippine history.
I woke up at 6:30 am hoping we could be one of the first people inside the precint to witness the opening of the ballots and pcos machine. Unfortunately, still had to do household chores and tend to my toddler's needs for my nanny took the day off to vote.
We arrived at the school 8:00 am. Outside the school, a tarpaulin where your precint number and its assigned cluster is printed is posted on the wall near the gate. I got my cluster number but upon checking on the master list of that cluster number, our names are not to be found. I thought voting is just going to be breeze. Oh well!
I was advised to go to the comelec volunteers and ask them to look on the computer to what cluster my precint was assigned. In short, clustering the precints seemed to be unorganized for that matter. On the positive note, our names were found (which I thought in the first place, wouldn't be found)and off we went to the cluster/classroom. Take note that in one cluster/classroom, about 5 to 8 precints were assigned there, so imagine the bulk of voters falling in line in one particular cluster.
After about 1 1/2 hours of falling in line (which was kinda unsystematic at first but eventually they got the groove), it was now our turn. Now how was it?
1. The BEI (Board of Election Insptector) asked for my precint number.
2.After telling him my precint no. she got a list of names under that precint and asked for my name.
3. After seeing my name on the list, she asked me to sign beside my name and put my right thumb mark.
4. After the thumb mark, she asked her assistant to look among the comelec registrations filed in a folder if I am registered. (Now here, i don't see any logic of looking among the file of regisrations if she already saw my name on the master list and I have already placed my signature and thumb mark on it. Wouldn't it be more logical if the assistant looked first among the regisration papers before I am being asked to place my signature and thumb mark? What if my regisration paper is nowhere to be found and I have already placed my thumb mark and my signature beside my name? Whatever!)
5. The BEI now verifies her assistant if my registration paper is there and then gave me my ballot. My FIRST BALLOT ever since I turned 18.
6. And so off I went to my desk to cast my first votes ever. Of course with a little mischief from my two-year old son,( I had to bring him because no one's going to look over him)I carefully shaded the oval thing, while my son was singing "may bilog, may bilog". I was really extra careful and had to stop every now and then because my son was eyeing my ballot and my pen while singing that "song".
7. After shading, I proceeded to the pcos machine and feed my ballot. Ooops! It didn't feed. It says " the machine does not take multiple sheets" something to that effect. Well I guess I fed my ballot on the wrong side of the sheet, because the volunteer turned it over and Presto! it fed.
8. The small screen said "ballot scanned" then "verifying ballot"... and I was praying that it will not be an invalid ballot. And then it says..."congratulations you're vote is already counted". Yipee! And now I can say I am a true-blue Filipino exercising my privilege.
I am so happy to have experienced my first election ever and it was an automated one. I am proud even more because I voted and knew that my one vote means my voice, even if it just a tiny voice, was heard and would make a difference in our history.
Let us just pray that after the voting, counting the votes will more peaceful and violence-free.
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