BY CHRYSEE G. SAMILLANO
The first day of the resumption of the voters’ registration for the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in Bacolod City was interrupted due to the heavy downpour that caused flood waters to rise outside the Commission on Elections Office in the city Monday.
Bacolod Election Officer Katrina Cana said this is one of the concerns she wants to raise before Bacolod Mayor Albee Benitez. Because of the flood, they had to temporarily stop receiving applications and had to check the requirements of those who had earlier applied.
She recalled that sometime in March, floodwaters also entered their office and damaged several documents. So, they will formally request assistance from the city in order to address the problem.
Cana said they issued 350 queue numbers and had to extend office hours to accommodate as many applicants as they can. But those who were not accommodated Monday were requested to come back the next day and were issued queue numbers on a first-come-first-served basis.
Applicants are required to bring identification documents with photographs and photocopy of their ID’s that have their address. In the absence of any valid identification documents, the applicant may be identified under oath by any registered voter of the precinct where he/she intends to be registered, she said.
Cana said applicants who are 15 to 19 years old are required to bring their baptismal or birth certificates.
The July 4 to 23 BSKE will include other transactions like transfer, change/corrections of entries, and reactivation.*