PIKIT, North Cotabato, (PNA) — Voting in at least 13 barangays here only started at about 1 p.m. after some confusions and refusal of public school teachers to serve due to security concerns.
As a result, soldiers and policemen became instant poll officials in voting that had been delayed for five hours.
More than 10,000 voters in 13 riverbank barangays of Pikit failed to cast votes as of 12 noon Monday because the poll body wanted the balloting in the barangay and not at the town center as what teachers and voters wanted it to be.
Joel Celis, Pikit election officer, said the teachers brought the ballot boxes and election paraphernalia to Pikit Central School Monday morning and the voters from 13 villages followed to the new venue.
Earlier, incumbent village council members passed resolutions asking the poll body to move the voting from the barangays to the town center for security and safety of teachers and voters.
But Celis stressed the request was turned down by Comelec-Manila thus voting must be held in the barangay and not at the town center.
“Election must be held in the barangay center and not here in Pikit elementary school,” Celis said even as he reminded the teachers that they are to obey Comelec directives.
“Their safety has been assured by the military so they have nothing to worry,” he said.
But the teachers were firm in their decision not to serve and insisted balloting should be at Pikit Central School.
One of the teachers assigned in Barangay Bagoinged, Pikit, stressed they know the situation in the village.
“The Comelec can charge us if it wants, we will not risk our lives there,” said one teacher identifying herself as Norabay.“Even voters told us not to go to Bagoinged because the situation there was unstable,” Norabay said, adding that the voters themselves came to the town center to vote.
Lawyer Duque Kadatuan, North Cotabato election supervisor, said that the balloting must push through as scheduled in 13 barnagays.
He said the teachers were misinformed that the voting centers were moved to the town center from 13 villages. “We have no order transferring the voting center,” he said.
“We will do everything so we can hold the election in the 13 barangays, if all efforts failed, then we will declare failure of election,” Kadatuan said. But with the soldiers and policemen acting as instant BETs, election pushed through.
“These 13 barangays are safe, we have enough forces there,” Capt. Antonio Bulao, Army 602nd brigade spokesman.
Kadatuan said some teachers agreed to serve and used the remaining hours to facilitate election with soldiers and policemen assisting them.
Teachers assigned in Bagoinged left the ballot boxes and turned them over to the military. “We will not risk our lives,” one teacher said.
With the teachers out, the soldiers and policemen brought the ballot boxes at 11:45 a.m. to the interior barangays to start the balloting at 1 p.m.
But the voters who also trooped to the Pikit central school, did not board the truck which will bring materials to the villages.
Before last May’s local and national elections, gunmen torched Gokutan Elementary School in Barangay Gokutan and after election, gunmen torched Bualan Elementary School and threatened the teachers.