An additional P2 billion is needed should the government decide to extend the May 2022 national elections by another day, said Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto, as authorities try to come up with solutions that will reduce number of people in polling precincts.
If the Commission on Elections (Comelec) put up 110,000 polling precincts for the 2022 presidential polls, it needs to shell out P2.1 billion for the honorarium of teachers who will serve as election inspectors, Recto said in a statement.
“If we simply double the 2019 honorarium rates of the three members of the Board of Election Inspectors or BEI then that would be the cost,” he said.
“Hindi pa kasama ang mga pulis dito. If you deploy an average of one per clustered precinct, then you will be mobilizing half of the country’s police force, which on paper is 194,988,” he said.
The Senate panel is also considering a law that will allow persons with disabilities, pregnant women, and the elderly to cast their votes by mail to decongest polling precincts and minimize the possible spread of the virus.
