MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will seek the full commitment of the Department of Energy (DOE) that the power situation on election day May 9 will be satisfactory, regardless of factors that might cause outages.

Comelec Commissioner George Garcia said Deputy Executive Director for Operations Teopisto Elnas is in constant communication with the DOE about the power outlook for May, but added that he will also meet with Energy Undersecretary Wimpy Fuentebella to hear straight from the source the agency’s efforts to avoid power outages on the day of voting.

“Does the spike in fuel prices have an effect as regards our power situation? We want to make a direct or indirect connection; we want an assurance that our power situation is good,” Garcia said in a press briefing on Thursday, March 31.

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A day earlier, policy group Institute for Climate and Sustainable Cities warned of rotating blackouts in April and May due to the shutdown of large coal plants.

The Comelec, in January, released Resolution No. 10759, which details contingency procedures for the 2022 polls.

According to the document, if there is power interruption, poll workers shall ensure that the vote-counting machine is connected to the battery.

“Don’t fret, we don’t have a problem with our backup batteries for our VCMs. The battery life of each VCM is 18 hours. For sure, the teachers will charge them before election day,” Garcia said, categorically assuring the public that voting will continue during a power outage.

Meanwhile, if there is power supply interruption in the canvassing venue, Comelec guidelines state that the canvassing board chairperson “shall inquire from the local electric provider the duration of the power interruption,” and exhaust all means to secure an available generator set. – Rappler.com