Comelec OKs extra pay for poll workers who faced VCM woes

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, May 16) — The Commission on Elections En Banc has approved in principle the appeal to give additional honoraria to poll workers who rendered overtime due to issues with the vote counting machines, Commissioner George Garcia said on Monday.

He said all poll workers, including teachers and technical staff, will get the extra pay of the same amount regardless of how long they extended their duty. He did not disclose the exact amount.

"Ang ating naging desisyon diyan ay across the board doon sa mga presinto na nagkaroon ng problema at diperensya ang machine," he said in the government-led Laging Handa briefing. "Papantay-pantayin natin dahil pare-parehas silang nag-overtime at naperwisyo o naistorbo sa pagkasira ng makina."

[Translation: We decided that the honoraria will be across the board in all precincts that encountered problems with the machines. It will be equal since all of them rendered overtime and were inconvenienced by the breakdown of the machines.]

He added they are still finalizing the list of voting precincts that encountered VCM glitches.

Acting Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco on Sunday said the affected poll workers could receive between P2,000 to P3,000 based on the amount given during the last elections.

Over 1,800 machines malfunctioned on May 9, mostly for paper jams, rejection of ballots, and faulty scanners, but the glitches were resolved on site. However, 143 defective VCMs needed to be replaced and sent to repair hubs. The glitches in VCMs and SD cards delayed the conduct of this year's polls in several areas.