Some things need to be improved in conduct of polls, says Bongbong's spox

The camp of presidential candidate Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. said Wednesday that the conduct of elections in the country still needs to be improved.

In a television interview, Marcos' spokesman, Atty. Vic Rodriguez, was asked for comment regarding the conduct of the May 9 national and local elections. He mentioned that there were concerns, including reports about malfunctioning vote counting machines (VCMs).

"Mayroon pang mga dapat i-improve and perhaps he will attend to it, President-elect Bongbong Marcos will definitely attend to it, 'yung mga kaunting problema nitong nakaraang halalan, 'yung mga malfunctioning and non-working vote counting machines, 'yung hindi pagpapahayag ng mga witnesses and watchers during the conduct of the printing of the ballots," Rodriguez told CNN Philippines.

(There are things that need to be improved and perhaps President-elect Bongbong Marcos will definitely attend to it. These include little problems such as the malfunctioning and non-working vote counting machines, and the sentiments of witnesses and watchers during the conduct of the printing of the ballots.)

"At kami nga ay isa sa mga sumulat diyan sa Commission on Elections. So 'yun 'yung mga bagay na pagtutuunan niya ng pansin. But on the overall, the conduct of elections, maayos naman, maliban doon sa iilang malfunctioning o non-working vote counting machines na agad namang natugunan ng Comelec. 'Yung kanilang mga technician nag-troubleshoot. Kung may mga replacement VCMs naman, agad napalitan," he added.

(We're one of those who wrote before to the Commission on Elections. So those are the things that he would give attention to. But on the overall, the conduct of the elections was orderly aside from the non-working VCMs which were addressed by Comelec. Their technicians did troubleshooting. If the VCMS needed to be replaced, they were immediately replaced.)

More than 98% of the election returns have been processed according to the Comelec Transparency Media Server, and partial and unofficial results show Marcos continuing to maintain a huge lead with over 31 million votes as of 11:02 a.m. Wednesday. 

Rodriguez expressed gratitude to presidential candidates who have already conceded as the move "diffuses the tense political situation."

Meanwhile, Rodriguez was also asked if there are already names of those who will be part of the Cabinet under the Marcos administration.

"Absolutely. Mayroon siyang ibang pangalan na nasa isip na. Subalit 'yun talaga rin ang character ni Bongbong eh, ni President-elect Bongbong. Ayaw niyang pangunahan ang mga bagay-bagay. Ang malinaw na sabi niya, 'Please cascade to everyone, do not look beyond May 9,'" Rodriguez responded.

(Absolutely. He has names on his mind. However, that's the character of Bongbong, of President-elect Bongbong. He does not want to preempt. He clearly said, 'Please cascade to everyone, do not look beyond May 9.') 

He said this matter as well as the transition of the government would be discussed "probably beginning this afternoon."

In a separate press conference, Rodriguez said some personalities have already signified their interest to serve under the Marcos administration. He did not disclose who they are.

"Maraming nag-signify ng kanilang kahandaan na magsilbi at maglingkod sa ating gobyerno, sa ating bansa, sa pamunuan ni (Many have signified their readiness to serve the government, our country, under the leadership of) president-elect Bongbong but again, we did not allow ourselves, especially president-elect Bongbong did not allow himself to look beyond May 9 because that is his character, that is his person, he is unassuming, he does not assume anything and he try not to pangunahan, pangunahan ba 'yung mga kaganapan, kailangan sa kanya eksakto..." he said.

Rodriguez also said there is no official coordination yet between the Duterte administration and the Marcos camp about the transition of the government.

Sara

Marcos' running mate, Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte, is also leading in the vice presidential race with more than 31.5 million votes as of 11:02 a.m. Wednesday in partial and unofficial results via the Comelec Transparency Media Server.

In a separate interview, Duterte's spokesman, Liloan Mayor Cristina Frasco, was asked if she will be staying in Davao City or in Manila after winning the elections.

"I do know that she is very much looking forward to fulfilling her role as vice president and I'm very confident in her ability to be able to balance her obligations both in Davao and in Manila and the rest of the country," Frasco said in an  interview with CNN Philippines.

"I also anticipate that Vice President-elect Sara, being a very hands on public servant, that we'll really be seeing a lot of her visiting different areas of our country and speaking directly to the people and continuing to be attuned to their needs. She'll definitely be a very hardworking vice president in support of president-elect Bongbong Marcos' administration," she added. —KG/AOL, GMA News