Enrile: Smooth reception of COCs seen

Senate President Juan Ponce Enrile yesterday said that the reception of the Certificates of Canvass (COCs) and the Election Returns (ERs) has been smooth and orderly.

He said the Senate has received 40 COCs to date, two from Baguio and La Union while the rest are from overseas voting centers.

"We expect this will start to trickle and then will arrive in a more voluminous number. We expect to receive a total 276 COCs," Enrile told members of the media at the Kapihan ng Senado yesterday.

The Senate receives both physical and electronic transmissions of the COCs and ERs. Under the Senate rules and guidelines, the printed COCs and the ERs will be received at the Senate building in Pasay City while the electronically transmitted COCs will be received in the House of Representatives.

Enrile said he had inquired from Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman Jose Melo the reason behind the slow trickle of the COCs from the field to the Senate. He said Melo explained that "all precincts have to be accounted for before they can proceed and prepare the COCs in the municipal, provincial and the city levels."

But as far as the COCs and ERs reception is concerned, he stressed, the Senate staff has done an exemplary job.

Enrile, who personally received the first batch of printed COCs from Philippine Ambassador to Laos Marilyn Alarilla late Tuesday night, said that three reception teams are on round-the-clock duty, with each team observing an eight-hour shift since the polling precincts closed at 6 p.m. last May 10.

All the proceedings, from the description of the condition of the ballot box, the reading of its serial number, the turnover of the keys and locks as well as the serial number of the self-locking seal, were properly documented with the use of still and video cameras.

Enrile said security is likewise tight at the Senate with the gun ban strictly being enforced. Earlier, Senate security head (Ret) Major Gen. Jose Balajadia, Jr. said a number of soldiers are securing the Senate premises. He said that no personnel will be allowed to enter the building without the proper clearance.

"Our office has mapped out the necessary security measures to ensure that the reception of COCs and ERs will run efficiently," he said.