Over .5 M voters from QC, Davao face deactivation

MANILA, Philippines - Over half a million voters from Quezon City and Davao City with no biometrics data might not be able to cast their votes in the 2016 presidential elections.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Grace Padaca said that Davao and Quezon cities have the most number of registered voters without the required biometrics.

Padaca said Davao City has more than 300,000 registered voters without biometrics registration or with incomplete biometrics.

After Davao City, Padaca said, Quezon City has 269,675, the second largest number of voters without biometrics.

Others cities with big numbers of voters without biometrics are Zamboanga City with 206,213; Caloocan City with 113,208; Bacoor, Cavite with 95,621; Batangas City with 69,378; Binangonan, Rizal with 66,907; Cabanatuan City with 65,673; Taguig City with 62,683; and Cotabato City with 62,016.

Based on Comelec data, there are 9,301,386 voters without biometrics data registration.

But Padaca said that Pangasinan had the highest turnout of voters that had their biometrics taken in the first four weeks of the registration period with 12,651.

Other provinces with high number of voters with biometrics are Quezon with 9,647; Batangas with 7,065; Isabela with 6,944; Sorsogon with 5,857; Leyte with 5,736; Samar (Western) with 5,658; Negros Occidental with 5,298; Cavite with 4,737; and Negros Oriental with 4,667.

The commission stressed that each voter must secure biometrics data before they can vote in the 2016 elections.

“Those who do not have biometrics data cannot vote in 2016, even if you have already voted in previous elections,” Padaca said in a previous interview.

Republic Act 10367 or the Mandatory Biometrics Registration Act of 2013 provides that voters who fail to have their biometrics taken prior to the May 2016 elections shall be deactivated from the voters’ list and not be allowed to vote.

Biometrics data refer to the automated identification of an individual, particularly his/her photograph, fingerprint and signature.

The Comelec has provided an online system to enable registered voters nationwide to check if they have their biometrics in the Comelec list.

Voters  can log  on  to  http://www.comelec.gov.ph/?r=VoterRegistration/NoIncompleteBio.