PPCRV faces tug-of-war with parties, bets over poll volunteers

The Catholic Church’s election watchdog, the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), faces a major concern in its bid to ensure credible elections on May 14: an apparent tug-of-war with political parties and candidates in getting volunteers.

PPCRV chairwoman Henrietta De Villa admitted it was this "sort of competition" that prompted the group to start its recruitment of poll watchers as early as September last year: "At the end of the day, we are really competing with the (political) parties. I think they offer P5,000 to each volunteer, so how can we top that when some of our poll watchers even shouldered their own expenses in previous elections?"

She said the only reward PPCRV can offer its volunteers is the "fulfillment of a Christian responsibility of rightful voting."

De Villa, a former ambassador to the Vatican, said PPCRV poll watchers also have the privilege of becoming "servants of the Church" and to serve an "office of love that is both the source and spirit of service."

"When our volunteers meet face to face, when our poll watchers meet the voters and election officials – because of our office of love – they disclose the human face of God," she said.

This recognition of PPCRV volunteers has the support of Novaliches Bishop Emeritus Teodoro Bacani, who celebrated the Ash Wednesday Mass at the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) office in Intramuros, Manila.

"We are faced with many election scandals and God’s response is: You made the problems, so you are the solution also. The PPCRV, with all its efforts to ensure clean elections, is God’s answer," Bacani said in his homily.

De Villa said the PPCRV needs at least 500,000 poll watchers to effectively monitor some 260,000 precincts nationwide. She said they will continue to recruit volunteers until April.

All other PPCRV operations – specifically its voters’ education program, as accredited by the government – are going smoothly so far, De Villa said.

While the PPCRV is gathering more volunteers, she said, it will begin training enlisted poll watchers using its Election Monitoring Manual, which was launched yesterday.

The 97-page manual carries guidelines for poll watchers on how to properly conduct monitoring and voter-assistance operations, especially on Election Day itself.

The PPCRV earlier released two manuals – the Pinoy Voters Academy and Halalan Idol – which are being used in their ongoing voters’ education program nationwide.

De Villa said the PPCRV will also partner with other sectors to strengthen their guard for the combined congressional and local elections.

She cited a memorandum of agreement to be forged between the PPCRV and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Department of Education (DepEd) on the creation of another manual for the Board of Election Inspectors that will be funded by the Asia Foundation.

In a joint news conference at the CBCP, Comelec Commissioner Resurreccion Borra said the project is crucial in the government’s bid to promote credibility and honesty in the elections.