Why it is important to vote and why many Filipinos are struggling to register to be a voter. This article is all about my experience on how I got reactivate and transferred my voter’s registration. As we all know election is coming and it will be on May 2022 next year. I was once a voter, but unfortunately I did not vote for almost a decade. My last vote was the national election last 2010 and I go all the way to province (Bicol) just to vote, during that time I’m already living in Pasig for 3 years but I was registered in Camarines Sur that’s why I need to go home just to vote. I remember the struggle going home during that time, from Cubao were looking for a bus going to Bicol and there’s a lot of passenger that time, we waited 8 in the evening but we’re able to ride a bus 7 in the morning the following day. This was happened 10 years ago. I'm not a registered voter for the past few years or should I say for almost a decade.
Now I decided to be one of the people who are looking for a change in government that’s why I go to comelec to reactivate and transfer my voter’s registration. Comelec give the entire Filipino citizen to register since 2019 but as you may know there is a “Filipino time” that most of the Filipino will registered when the deadline is near and I have to say I’m one of them. Hahaha
Last June I go to comelec to register but the guard on duty told me that the registration is only available every morning they start at 7a.m they don’t accept any transaction in the afternoon unless if you are PWD, Senior Citizen or a pregnant woman. I’m a night person and it’s so hard for me to wake up as early as 7a.m that’s I did not come back last June. Last month I try to go to comelec and register but they only allowed first 200, unfortunately I did not reach the first 200 even though I always to there as early as 6 a.m. still I didn’t get the number, the I tried again as early as 5a.m I go there but still didn’t get a number for the first 200.
I was so frustrated and don’t want to get registered anymore because I’ve been trying to fall in line as early as 5 in the morning for almost one week and still not able to reach the quota which is the first 200, I even ask my friend Jen if I’m still going to register then she said “no” it’s okay if I don’t vote in the next election because there are also a lot of people who’s not a register voters.
One day I’m watching videos at tik tok, then I saw the post of Maris Racal (she’s an actress/singer her in the Philippines) a quick video about her journey in voters registration. She was able to register in comelec as early as 2a.m she’s already in queue and there are a lot of people trying to fall in line just to register, then I realized if she was able to do it to register and fall in line as early as 2a.m then I can also do that.
Picture above is the registration site, I was there as early as 12 midnight but the people are already in queue.
I got registered last week it took me 8 hours just to get a number so that I have a slot to registered, and 2 hours to for profiling and biometrics.
It’s so exhausting and I don’t have enough sleep during that time but it’s worth it because I get another chance to change the system and make better choices for a better tomorrow for the Philippines.
I don’t know who I’m going to vote for yet, I’m still waiting for everyone to announce their candidacies and more importantly their platforms. I really hope we stray away from personality politics and based our decisions on track records and what flat form each candidate is running on. Think of it as a job interview, what would you ask the candidate, what prior experience would you look for? What background checks would you do, what would convince you? Which references would you check?
At the end of the day, your vote should reflect what you want for yourself, your community and your country, it’s a personal decision with implications. To anyone of you who's not yet a register voters you can still register because it is extended until end of October.
I also want to share this experience in getting a national I. D. of course long queue is always there when it's come to government applications. It took me almost 5 hours just get be registered in national I.d
After 3 months their gonna send the national I.d to me I hope I'll get it within 3 months. Unlike voters I. D it took me years to get my I. D.
