Voter sign-up hubs in malls also open on weekdays till Sept. 30

MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) assured voter applicants that satellite voter registration in malls will also be open on weekdays.

“They’re open not just weekends, there are voter registration centers in malls that are open even during weekdays. There are many opportunities for voters to register. We are open until Sept. 30, so there is still time,” Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said in a press briefing during the launch of the nationwide synchronized mall registration day at the Robinsons Place Manila on Saturday.

Jimenez said the poll body has tapped malls as venues for voter registration as these have wide areas available for this activity.

“(In terms of) maintaining social distancing, malls have resources that Comelec offices do not have. There are a lot of reasons why it’s ideal to go to the mall for registration. We started in 2016 and it was proven to be a successful model to continue in the future,” he added.

As for the cut-off system, Jimenez said it is implemented since registration machines can only handle so much.

“Regarding the cut off that is a practical problem. The cut-off is dictated by how many the machines can handle. Because as for our machines, it’s not a simple matter of just entering the names, there is a process. If you are looking at the number of people in a day that you can serve, it has a natural limit,” he said.

Meanwhile, Commissioner Aimee Ferolino-Ampoloquio said holding satellite registration in malls also assures the safety of applicants.

“This is the show to the people that we partnered with the malls to give the people a comfortable place to register as well as a safe place to register,” she said.

Aside from Robinsons Malls, Ayala Malls and SM Malls are participating in voter registration activities all over the country.

The nationwide voter registration is set to end on Sept. 30.