By Ferdinand Patinio

MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is confident of meeting its April 14 deadline to finish the printing of 73 million official ballots for the midterm elections, despite delays due to temporary restraining orders issued by the Supreme Court on cases filed by candidates.
“April 14 is still the target date. As for the Comelec part, we will be able to do everything necessary to attain that target date. That’s why we deputized the National Printing Office (NPO). We act faster that way,” Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said in an interview Tuesday.
Earlier, Garcia reported that the NPO has been deputized to help ensure faster and more efficient ballot printing.
Ballot printing process started on Jan. 6 but temporarily stopped on Jan. 14.
“Comelec should distribute all election paraphernalia throughout the country two weeks before the elections because there is final testing and sealing one week before [May 12]. All machines, 10 ballots per precinct, will be tested by Election Board members and real voters. Before the start of final testing and sealing (FTS), materials must be present, including ballots,” he said.
During the FTS, there will be an end-to-end test of the process, from the initialization of the machines, to the voting of at least 10 persons (randomly selected among those present), to the feeding of the accomplished ballots to the vote counting machines, until the printing of election returns.
The poll body destroyed the six million official and test printed prior to the rulings of the High Court.
Gun ban week 1: 250 nabbed, 255 guns seized
At least 250 were apprehended while 255 firearms were confiscated on the first week of the election gun ban, according to the Philippine National Police (PNP).
As of Monday, the PNP said the National Capital Region (NCR) and Central Luzon had the most violators with 65 individuals each, followed by Central Visayas with 31 violators and Calabarzon with 17.
Those arrested were two foreign nationals, a soldier, two members of other law enforcement agencies, while the rest were civilians.
Of the 255 firearms confiscated, 115 were revolvers, 71 were pistols, six were shotguns, six were explosives, one was a class-A firearm, one was a rifle and 55 were other types of firearms.
The region with the most firearms seized was the NCR with 67 guns confiscated, followed by Central Luzon with 64 and Central Visayas with 31.
The PNP also reported that it conducted 60,778 Comelec checkpoints so far since the election period began on Jan. 12.
In a press conference in Camp Crame on Tuesday, PNP Public Information Office chief Col. Rudulf Tuaño reminded the public that the gun ban suspends all permits to carry firearms outside residence (PTCFOR).
He also said the PNP is coordinating with security agencies to remind their personnel of the existing gun ban.
“When there is no gun ban, the system was the security guards are bringing home their guns. We have charged some of them. They usually say they forgot about the gun ban when they are caught,” said Tuaño.
Gun ban checkpoints would be in place during the election period from Jan. 12 to June 11.
During the election period, all permits to carry and possess firearms outside residence are canceled, except for those who secured an exemption from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) or government officials with automatic exemptions.
As a general rule, only bonafide police, military and members of government law enforcement agencies in complete uniform and while on official duty are allowed to carry firearms for the entire election period. (With reports from Lloyd Caliwan/PNA)