Phl seeks to copy success of US polls

MANILA, Philippines - The Philippines is hoping to achieve the kind of elections in the United States where winners are immediately announced and the results instantly accepted, instead of challenged through electoral protests.

“We saw how fast they came up with the results. It’s something that we would like to also replicate here in the Philippines. We hope that with our automated elections, we would be able to determine immediately the victors in our elections in order to obviate and to shorten the process of all these election protests,” presidential spokesman Edwin Lacierda told a press briefing yesterday.

“We would hope that with the automated elections, we would be able to come up with results that are credible; that would elicit recognition by the Filipino people of the genuineness of the elections. But certainly, as a country, I’m sure we will be exercising our right to suffrage and we expect the politicians of whatever color to recognize the results of the elections,” he said.

Zambales Rep. Milagros Magsaysay said this could be achievable in the Philippines as long as all parties involved commit to running an honest campaign and support the measures being undertaken by the Commission on Elections to ensure the success of the process.

Magsaysay noted many Filipinos were tweeting yesterday about how they want the Philippine elections to be like the US, where both the voters and the candidates have 100 percent faith in the system.

Afterwards, all parties have shown great statesmanship by giving their support to the winner and committing to help develop the nation, she said.

“I believe that while we have a different system in electing our officials in our country, we can achieve the same level of success as the US elections,” Magsaysay said.

She said all issues pertaining to the elections should be transparent for the voters to believe in the results of the elections, or else doubts will continue to haunt the winning candidates.

“It’s the responsibility of all Filipinos to be vigilant and cooperative if we want to duplicate the success of the United States election system,” Magsaysay said.

Business and defense policies

At the same time, Malacañang expressed confidence that the country’s business process outsourcing (BPO) industry would not be affected by the policies of reelected US President Barack Obama.

Lacierda said there was no discussion yet on what the Philippines would do with regard to the BPO industry.

Under the Bring Jobs Home Act, a 20 percent tax break will be given to US companies that will move jobs back to the US. The bill was among Congress’ “to-do list” that Obama unveiled earlier this year but failed to pass.

“We don’t know yet. So I don’t want to preempt or make any comment yet. It’s still pending in the (US) Congress so we don’t know yet. Let’s wait for the developments on that particular bill in the US Congress,” Lacierda said.

Lacierda added he was not in a position to announce if the Philippines would lobby for the retention of the BPO companies in the country.

The re-election of Obama has renewed worries the US Congress may finally approve the bill.

Presidential Communications Development and Strategic Planning Office Undersecretary Manuel Quezon III told ANC that even if the bill passed, the BPO industry would still survive and flourish.

“Our skills and excellence speaks for itself and any business will make a decision based on its bottom line. If the US feels it’s important to be on good terms with the Philippines, it’s not going to start killing jobs here,” Quezon said.

The BPO industry currently employs almost 500,000 Filipinos.

The country’s largest labor group, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), said they are now looking forward to better working conditions for Filipino workers in America with the re-election of Obama.

“The victory of President Obama is a victory for Americans and Filipino workers as well,” TUCP president Ernesto Herrera said.

He said close to two million Filipinos currently work and live in different states in the US.“ – Paolo Romero, Mayen Jaymalin