Comelec, PNP Face Tough Battle vs Digital Vote-Buying

By Jennifer P. Rendon

Vote-buying has long been a major concern for the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Philippine National Police (PNP), but the rise of mobile wallet services such as GCash and Maya has made it even more challenging to track and prevent.

Colonel Bayani Razalan, director of the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO), said digital transactions have made it harder for authorities to catch those involved in vote-buying schemes.

“Dati kasi, ang vote buying ay pumupunta sa mga bahay-bahay dala yung pera. Ngayon, electronic na. This evolution will make it hard for us to catch those involved in this fraudulent activity,” Razalan said.

Attorney Reinier Layson, Comelec-Iloilo provincial supervisor, admitted that even before digital transactions, catching those involved in vote buying was difficult because the activity happens privately.

“We cannot effectively pursue or arrest them unless we catch them in the act. By the time we arrive in areas where vote buying has been reported, they have already run off,” Layson said.

During the recent barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections, the Comelec and other government agencies launched the Committee on Kontra Bigay (CKB) to strengthen policies against vote buying and selling.

The initiative aims to provide a mechanism for tackling election-related violations using a whole-of-nation approach.

“We are expecting to further fine-tune and improve the committee and strengthen the authority in implementing the law against vote buying,” Layson said.

However, the implementing rules and regulations (IRR) for the CKB have yet to be promulgated by Comelec.

“We are still waiting for the formal promulgation of the rules for the Committee on Kontra Bigay,” Layson said.

He emphasized that the CKB empowers ordinary citizens by giving them a platform to report and help prosecute individuals involved in vote buying and selling.

“Ordinary citizens can help us report and prosecute the players involved in vote buying,” he said.

Layson added that a help desk will be set up in every municipality or city to assist in monitoring and reporting vote-buying activities.

To curb digital vote buying, some stakeholders have suggested placing a temporary cap on e-wallet transactions in the days leading up to Election Day.

One proposed measure is to limit the number of transactions to 10 or fewer to prevent large-scale vote buying through electronic means.