Comelec: No need to present ID when voting in BOL plebiscite

Those who will vote in the plebiscite for or against the ratification of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) would not need identification cards to be able to cast their vote, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Friday.

Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez made the clarification during the signing of the memorandum of agreement between the Comelec, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP), and the Bangsamoro Transition Commission (BTC) for an intensified information drive on the BOL and how the BOL referendum will be conducted.

The BOL replaces the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) with an Bangsamoro Autonomous Region governed by the Bangsamoro Parliament elected by the Bangsamoro Region’s inhabitants.

The BOL also grants the Bangsamoro Region five percent of the net national internal revenue collection of the Bureau of Internal Revenue and the Bureau of Customs as block grant, on top of the at least P5 billion worth of Special Development Fund for the Bangsamoro Region every year for the next 10 years, starting 2019.

“The biggest misconception we are getting [from the ground] is that you have to have an ID to be able to vote in a plebiscite. That’s why we have sent word to our officials in the field that they (voters) don’t need to present an ID to vote,” Jimenez told reporters.

“They just have to come to the polling area and we will check their name on the registered voters’ list, precinct number and at most, ask them when is their birthday. But no ID will be needed,” Jimenez added.

The BOL plebiscite will be conducted on January 21 and February 6, 2019 to determine if majority of those residing in the ARMM provinces are agreeable to abolishing the ARMM and establishing the Bangsamoro Region.

The January 21, 2019 plebiscite date is for the voters within ARMM areas, Isabela City in Basilan, and Cotabato City, while the February 6, 2019 BOL referendum day is for Lanao del Norte, except Iligan City and six North Cotabato municipalities.

The Comelec has printed 2.8 million ballots for the BOL plebiscite, and the printing of these ballots is expected to be completed today, December 21.

These 2.8 million ballots will then be shipped to the ARMM by the first week of January in time for the two-day voting.

“There is high interest on the ground, and anyone there is talking about it. That is why the level of education on the process is very important,” Jimenez said.

Having said that, Jimenez said that it is important for the Comelec, Opapp and BTC to double their efforts of educating the public about the BOL and process of making their vote count.

“Ang issue rito, hindi lang ang pagbobotohan [na BOL ratification], kundi kung paano rin bumoto. Our role is to facilitate the process,” Jimenez said.

The BOL is a product of the peace agreement signed between the government and former separatist group Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 2014. — MDM, GMA News