3-day election makes sense
By Al S. Mendoza
I’VE said it before and I’ll say it again: Let’s hold next year’s elections for three days.
One day for Luzon. One day for the Visayas. One day for Mindanao.
This will be for the good both of the Comelec and the nation long embroiled in hurtful atmosphere.
With the three-day polling, there will be less missteps, less chaos, and, yes, less stress—for our teachers and other personnel directly involved in the electoral process.
My idea didn’t draw much attention the first time I broached it up.
Was it six years ago? I guess so.
I had totally forgotten about it.
Then this week, someone called Comelec’s attention to it.
Immediately, it met objections. The first objector itself was the Comelec. Crazy.
While Comelec should be the first to entertain the idea instead of shooting it down outright, I am not that surprised anymore.
By nature, man reacts negatively at the outset to any new idea.
Allergic to new visions. Comfort zone too difficult to shift. Change causes new positioning.
Government factotums aren’t exempted.
That James Jimenez himself was frosty to the three-day election process has made me the least surprised.
It just gave me the creeps because Jimenez should be the last person to be dismissive of the thought.
Isn’t he the Comelec spokesman?
And, as such, he should be the first person to embrace suggestions designed to help ease the workload at the Comelec?
That he should be more circumspect than critical of new notions?
More submissive to the free market of ideas?
Not to shoot down outright any concept like someone firing his shotgun outright when pushed to a corner?
“Very expensive,” Jimenez barked.
How can that be?
Costing will be basically the same.
Your budget for Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, when totaled for three days, will remain relatively unchanged in its totality.
Common sense, man, common sense.
The same set of teachers commissioned for work will be on duty for one day only in each of the three-day political exercise.
You don’t bring teachers done for work from Luzon for deployment again in the Visayas and Mindanao. Vice versa.
So, what added work are we talking about here?
What added budget?
What’s the buzz?
My point of view in 2016 will remain unchanged: We could stop, if not surely minimize, cheating as there will be less stringent measures on each day of the three-day polling period.
Strong focus and courageous concentration on each of the three major islands of Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao will be definitely decisive, ensuring an honest election at the very least.
Besides being a virtual tense-free event each day of the process for our teachers and poll watchers, vote-buying, intimidation and other forms of hooliganism will be extremely put under check.
More people involved—as in a one-day election activity on a national scale—breeds an unwieldy environment.
Less people on duty, the more control there will be.
The Comelec doesn’t like that?
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