Filipino voters in Sweden receive 2 ballot papers, Comelec awaits report
MANILA, Philippines – A Filipino voter registered in Sweden sounded the alarm about possible irregularities after receiving two ballot papers for the foreign election from the Philippine Embassy in Stockholm.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday evening, April 12 (Stockholm time), the voter, who agreed to let Rappler report on his case provided his name is withheld, wrote about his experience of receiving two ballot papers from the embassy with two names. One of his supposed names on the envelopes was misspelled, as can be seen from photos he published.
The voter said he received his first ballot on April 11 and did so immediately. Just as the voter sealed his envelope and got ready to send it back to the embassy, ββhe received another the next day.
“When I went home from work today, I received a new email from the embassy. It contains almost the same elements as I received yesterday, [but it] It just so happened that my name is misspelled and the envelope that came from the election commission (Comelec) is missing “, he said.
The voter posted a photo of the two packages showing different voice and envelope numbers.
“Why [did I receive] same email twice from the embassy? “This would be susceptible to cheating and voting if it ended up in the hands of evil people,” he said.
The voter also questioned Comelec’s data management and why certain elements were present in one package and absent in the other.
“Considering that I now have two official ballot papers then, which one is actually linked under my name? If I send in one of them now and it turns out that the other is the actual ballot paper linked to my name, then my vote will not count, right? β he added.
Rappler cross-checked the voter’s name with the Certified List of Overseas Voters (CLOV) published on the Comelec website. The misspelled name of one of the voter’s election packages was not on CLOV. The voter also did not have a name under the embassy’s jurisdiction.
Filipinos abroad have started casting their ballots for the month-long voting period abroad from April 10 to May 9.
The authorities’ response
The voter updated his Facebook post when the Philippine embassy in Stockholm responded to his concerns. The embassy informed him of the correct election number and envelope number to use, and to return the other election material to the embassy.
The voter answered by asking if he could go to the embassy in person to ensure that the wrong ballot paper could be disposed of instead of possibly being sent to someone else.
“Please inform me of the next step I can take regarding this. I want to keep my voice this time. I also hope that someone would be held accountable for this error, as it would be very alarming not only for me but for other Filipino voters. if they encountered this scenario “, he wrote to the embassy.
The embassy had the voter submit the ballot paper in person. “We are investigating the matter and will inform Comelec of the error,” the embassy said.
Authorities also told voters they “raised concerns in Manila.”
Comelec said at the time that they would wait for a report on the incident.
“Maghihintay po tayo ng tamang rapport, lalo na sa ating embahada o konsulada“Comelec Commissioner George Garcia told reporters. (We are awaiting a report, especially from the embassy or consulate.)
Garcia also advised the public to be vigilant against “fake news” following incidents involving alleged shaded ballot papers in Dubai and Singapore, which the Philippine posts denied.
“So sana naman po, iyong ganyang report said Sweden and other areas, hindi totoo. Package natin, iwasan natin ang fake news“he said. (We hope that these reports in Sweden and other areas are not true. We ask everyone to avoid false news.)
Rappler also contacted the Philippine Embassy in Sweden for its official comment, but it did not respond to the post. – with a report from Dwight de Leon / Rappler.com