Potential heavy rainfall and severe flooding could create logistical hurdles for the inaugural Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) parliamentary elections scheduled for September 14, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) warned on Monday.
Speaking to reporters during a Media Walkthrough in Makati, COMELEC Chairperson George Erwin Garcia revealed that election officials are evaluating schools and voting centers situated in flood-prone, low-lying communities across the region.
“Mas pinoproblema ng Comelec yung mga eskwelahan kung saan gagawin yung ating halalan… baka kasi yung mga eskwelahan nila ay binabaha,” Garcia said.
“Tinitingnan natin kung saka-sakali man sa araw mismo ng halalan umuulan nang malakas, saan natin ililikas yung mga voter center natin? Saan natin pabobotohin yung mga kababayan natin?” he added.
Despite concerns regarding flooding at physical voting centers, Garcia expressed full confidence in the election network’s technical resilience, noting that high-performance Starlink satellite terminals provided by iOne Resources, Inc. will keep data transmission intact regardless of severe weather conditions.
“Yung mga pag-ulan ngayon, hindi po kami natatakot doon sa baka hindi makapag-transit kasi nga po magandang klase ng Starlink ang ibinigay ng iOne [Resources, Inc]. Sure kami na kahit na ganito ang ulan, may habagat man o bagyo, makakapag-transmit pa rin tayo ng results,” Garcia assured.
The commission aims to finalize the deployment of all election equipment within the month. Garcia highlighted that preparations are roughly 95% complete ahead of the historic regional vote.
A voter turnout of 2.393 million registered citizens is expected across 5,212 precincts, spanning two cities and 105 municipalities in BARMM. Voters will choose 80 members of the new Bangsamoro Parliament: 40 regional political party representatives, 32 district representatives, and eight sectoral representatives.