Teachers as Board of Electoral Inspectors : An Unwavering Service
It’s Election Day, and 65,745,529 registered voters are set to cast their votes, bringing their hopes to make Philippines a continuously progressive nation. Where 56% of the voting population accounts for ages 18-57 years old, making history as one of the largest voting population to date. To facilitate these huge mass of voters, the Commission on Elections tapped the Department of Education, to allow its teachers to serve in the 2022 National and Local Elections.
Waking up at 3:00 o’clock in the morning is not unusual for teachers who diligently function as esteemed individuals of the society. From going to school before students rush in, to going late after making ends meet with forms and doing classroom chores – teachers are indeed an overall package. In every conduct of the National and Local Elections, tapping public and private school teachers equates public trust.
A month before Election Day, teachers were trained as to how they would conduct the election process – how to conduct the Final Testing and Sealing (FTS), the operation of the Vote Counting Machine, election preliminaries, voting processes, and the transmission of results to both local and national servers. And these trainings were successfully carried out by the teachers or the Board of Electoral Inspectors.
Come Election Day, and the easy 3:00 o’clock call was like a passing wind as teachers rushed with gladness to their assigned Polling Places to facilitate the casting of votes. The massive attendances was expected, and with the help of the support staff, crowds were managed well following adherence to the implementation of safety protocols gauged by the I.A.T.F. Teachers are really creative, making queues easily manageable while ensuring a two-meter individual distance. Room ventilation was also prioritized to make sure that free flowing air is accessible to both the voters and the Electoral Inspectors. Who would have been a priority? The Vote Counting Machine, of course, it needs ventilation.
Transmission of votes are quite an adventure, due that teachers assigned to areas with poor internet connection has to look for places where they can transmit results – even bringing the machines outside the voting places. Such was a thrill, yet fulfilling.
Getting to serve in the national and local elections is a rewarding experience. Teachers really are vessels of the voice of the people. Noting that, “Vox Populi, Vox Dei.” (Contributed article)