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Office of Representative Antonio L. Tinio
ACT Teachers Party-List
House of Representatives
NEWS RELEASE
April 26, 2012
Reference: ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. Antonio L. Tinio (0920-922-0817)
ACT Teachers solon hails COMELEC support for teachers’
benefits, welfare in 2013 polls
ACT Teachers Representative Antonio L. Tinio welcomes the support pledged
by Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Chair Sixto S. Brillantes, Jr. for
teachers’ rights and welfare at a dialogue Wednesday, April 25, at
Intramuros.
The dialogue was set up by the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) to
advance proposals for higher compensation and adequate protection of
teachers who will be deputized by COMELEC in the national polls next year.
Revealing that he had seen firsthand the sacrifices of teachers during
elections, Brillantes understands the need to compensate them fairly. “We
will not object to whatever you [teachers] will ask,” he says, referring
to the poll body which he chairs. He stresses, however, that there should
be a similar commitment on the part of the executive branch, particularly
the Department of Budget and Management (DBM), in the form of budgetary
allocations.
Tinio and ACT seeks higher pay for teachers who sit in the boards of
election inspectors (BEIs) and support personnel (P5,000 and P1,500,
respectively for the entire three-day election service). They also propose
a P3,000-honorarium for principals deputized as precinct supervisors.
Previously, teachers were given P4,000 and principals were not paid at
all.
As for the perennial delay in the giving of honoraria, Brilliantes says,
“Maipapangako ko sa inyo—hindi na made-delay.”
Brillantes also supports the enactment of Tinio’s House Bill 4096, which
seeks to open election service to all citizens, thus releasing public
school teachers from the burden of preparing for elections and running
them at the precinct level. Pending its enactment, Brillantes says that
COMELEC may issue resolutions that would allow exceptions to mandatory
service for health reasons, age, and the like. He adds that COMELEC is
studying other ways to ease the load of BEIs, such as streamlining the
procedure inside precincts.
Tinio brought to COMELEC’s attention the failure of thousands of teachers
to vote during the 2010 elections. With the implementation of automation,
those in BEIs were prevented from voting in the precincts where they were
assigned because the precinct count optical scan machines there do not
contain their names. They did not have time to go to the precincts where
they were registered due to the clustering of precincts and heavy work
load. Brillantes vows to put three extra ballots per precinct to enable
BEI members to vote in the 2013 polls. He also commits to study other
proposals to prevent a recurrence of the disenfranchisement, such as early
appointment of BEIs, longer breaks, and inclusion of teachers in the rules
for domestic absentee voting.
Tinio relayed teachers’ concerns on security. Brillantes agrees that
greater protection from harassment, intimidation, and violence should be
given to teachers, and promises closer coordination of the COMELEC with
the Philippine National Police.
Tinio also proposes an insurance fund higher than the P200,000,000
appropriated for the last elections, which would afford teachers a hazard
pay, sufficient coverage for medical assistance, and life insurance.
Lastly, Tinio stresses the need for extending protection to teachers after
the elections, in the form of legal assistance for teachers sued for
election-related criminal and administrative charges. Brillantes raised
the possibility of having a kitty fund from which COMELEC would tap for
the services of the Public Attorney’s Office, Integrated Bar of the
Philippines, or private lawyers who will aid these teachers.
To make the above proposals possible, Tinio and Brillantes vowed to
cooperate towards a higher COMELEC budget at the deliberations for the
2013 General Appropriations Act beginning August this year.
“This support voiced by the country’s polling agency only proves that
there are material bases for teachers’ clamor for fair compensation and
adequate physical, political, and legal protection for their efforts and
sacrifices,” Tinio says. “Education Secretary Bro. Armin Luistro is now
joined by COMELEC Chair Brillantes in rallying behind teachers in their
struggle for rights and welfare during elections.”
“It is high time for President Aquino to do the same—we challenge him to
direct the DBM and his allies in Congress to champion a higher COMELEC
budget to make all these proposed reforms possible, and to enable the
swift enactment of related legislative reforms such as HB 4096.” ###
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