Comelec convenes as NBOC for 2nd national automated polls

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) officially convened Monday night as the National Board of Canvassers (NBOC) to start the canvassing of votes in the second national automated polls.

The NBOC convened past 6 p.m. at the Philippine International Convention Center (PICC) in Pasay City, an hour before the voting officially closes at 7 p.m.

The Comelec en banc—Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. and the six poll commissioners—makes up the NBOC. Its task is to consolidate the votes and declare the winners in the senatorial and party-list races.

It is expected to receive the certificates of canvass (COC) from the provincial board of canvassers (PBOC), which gets COCs from the municipal or city board of canvassers.

During the 2010 presidential elections, the NBOC officially convened past 3:30 p.m., thirty minutes after the voting period closed.

Meanwhile, lawyers of senatorial candidates and party-list groups started arriving at the PICC to observe the canvassing. Some arrived as early as 5 p.m.

In an interview with reporters, lawyer George Garcia, who is representing senatorial candidates JV Estrada, Eddie Villanueva, Edward Hagedorn, Alan Peter Cayetano and Juan Miguel Zubiri,   said the hours after the closing of the voting period are the most crucial.

“Tapos na ang botohan ng 7 p.m., by 8 p.m., magsisimula nang mag-transmit ng boto. Will they really be able to transmit the result of the elections?” he asked.

After the voting period ends, the board of election inspectors in every precinct will print the election returns and then electronically transmit the results to the municipal or city board of canvassers.

The MBOCs or CBOCs will electronically transmit the results to provincial BOCs which will then transmit the results to the NBOC.

Garcia said he is present to protect the interest of the senatorial candidates and although there was no irregularities or anomalies, the failure of some Precinct Count Optical Scan (PCOS) machines earlier in the day gives some jitters.

“Maraming nag-fail na PCOS, how about yung transmission?” he said.  — Gian Geronimo and Amita Legaspi/KBK, GMA News