Kontra Daya Launches Election Watchdog in Panay

By Juliane Judilla

Election watchdog Kontra Daya officially launched its Panay chapter on March 17, aiming to ensure fairness in the 2025 midterm elections.

The event brought together religious and cause-oriented groups to establish a regional network focused on monitoring and exposing electoral fraud, equipping individuals and organizations with voter education and election monitoring tools, and mobilizing volunteers to push for electoral reforms.

“Elections must be free from fraud, manipulation, and coercion, ensuring that every vote is counted accurately and transparently,” said Rev. Msgr. Marco Sulayao, chairperson of the Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR)-Panay and Guimaras and lead convenor of Kontra Daya Panay.

“Our vision is a clear, transparent, and accountable electoral system that truly reflects the people’s will,” Sulayao added.

Concerns Over Automated Election System

The Computer Professionals’ Union (CPU) presented an analysis of the Automated Election System (AES), citing 321 verified cases of voting machine errors out of 919 total verified cases from 3,234 reported incidents during the May 9, 2022, national elections.

“There are still no significant changes in the 2025 elections regarding electoral fraud, given that the AES is still in place. The contractor has just been changed, the machines are new, and there are additional processes in voting,” said Gladys Regalado of CPU.

Regalado emphasized the urgency of proactive election monitoring due to the introduction of the FASTrAC (Full Automation System with Transparency Audit and Accounting) and rising political tensions in the country.

“It seems that the FASTrAC system is closed off to ensure that no electoral fraud happens during the voting and counting. However, malfunctions and ACM-level hacking may still persist,” she said.

Push for a Hybrid Election System

CPU called for a Hybrid Election System to improve transparency and public oversight.

“We are not after fast transmission of votes; what’s the use of fast voting if the people behind the system are not trustworthy?” Regalado said.

“That is why we push for a hybrid election system for a more transparent and openly monitored voting process,” she added.

Atty. Wil Arceño, Provincial Election Supervisor VI and acting regional director of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Region VI, discussed key election concerns, including premature campaigning, disinformation, abuse of government resources, and the new COMELEC Resolution No. 1116 on Anti-Discrimination and Fair Campaigning Guidelines for the 2025 National and Local Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (NLBPE).

Established in 2007, Kontra Daya is a broad alliance dedicated to combating election fraud and ensuring fair and democratic elections.

Since its founding, the group has actively monitored elections, exposed fraud, and pushed for electoral reforms.