Republic of the Philippines COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS Intramuros, Manila GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS ON Chairman ABAS, Sheriff M. VOTING OF PERSONS WITH Commissioner PARRENO, Al A. DISABILITIES, SENIOR Commissioner GUIA, Luie Tito F. CITIZENS AND HEAVILY Commissioner GUANZON, Ma. Rowena Amelia V. PREGNANT VOTERS IN Commissioner INTING, Socorro B. EMERGENCY ACCESSIBLE Commissioner CASQUEJO, Marlon S. POLLING PLACES (EAPP) FOR Commissioner KHO, Antonio Jr, PURPOSES OF THE MAY 13, 2019 NATIONAL AND LOCAL ELECTIONS AND ALL SUCCEEDING ELECTIONS Promulgated on _January 23, 2019 resotution no, 10486 “ WHEREAS, Sections 10 and 11 of Article II (Declaration of Principles and State Policies) of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines states that, “The State shall provide social justice in all phases of national development and that the State values the dignity of every human person and guarantees full respect for human rights”, respectively; WHEREAS, the 2! paragraph of Section 2, Article V (Suffrage) of the 1987 Constitution of the Republic of the Philippines, states that, “The Congress shall also design a procedure for the disabled and the illiterates to vote without the assistance of other persons. Until then, they shall be allowed to vote under existing laws and such rules as the Commission on Elections may promulgate to protect the secrecy of the ballot”; WHEREAS, Article 29 (Participation in Political and Public Life) of the United Nations Conventions on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UN CPRD), states that, “States Parties shall guarantee to persons with disabilities political rights and the opportunity to enjoy them on an equal basis with others, and shall undertake to, among others, ensure that persons with disabilities can effectively and fully participate in political and public life on an equal basis with others, directly or through freely chosen representatives, including the right and opportunity for persons with disabilities to vote and be elected”; WHEREAS, Section 31 (Programs and Projects Related to Senior Citizens and Persons with Disability] of Republic Act No. 109641, states that, “All agencies of the - * General Provision of PY 2018 General Appropriations Act (QA)government shall formulate plans, programs and projects intended to address the concerns of senior citizens and persons with disability, insofar as it relates to their mandated functions, and integrate the same in their regular activities”; WHEREAS, Section 1 (Declaration of Policy) of Republic Act No. 10366? states that “The State shall ensure that persons with disabilities and senior citizens are able to exercise their right to political participation without discrimination or restrictions. Towards this end, the State shall design systems and procedures that will enable persons with disabilities and senior citizens to register and vote by themselves”; WHEREAS, Batas Pambansa Bilang 3445 and Republic Act No. 7277* mandate that all government infrastructures and facilities shall provide architectural or structural features, designs or facilitics that will reasonably enhance the mobility, safety and welfare of persons with disability; WHEREAS, the Strategic Goals of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC} Strategic Pillar No. I (convenient, credible and well-managed election day services) are: a) To ensure convenience and complete information for all voters on election day; and b) To ensure that voting centers/polling places and voting are convenient. and accessible to members of the vulnerable sectors; WHEREAS, as a Constitutional Commission, the COMELEC is mandated to oversee the conduct of free, orderly, fair and clean elections. The structured programs of the Commission are (1) Election Administration; and (2) Blectoral Enforcement and Adjudication. ‘The primary activities related to Election Administration are the conduct of registration and elections, NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to its authority under the 1987 Constitution and other relevant election laws, the Commission RESOLVED, as it hereby RESOLVES, to promulgate the following General Instructions on Voting of Persons with Disabilities, Senior Citizens and heavily pregnant voters in the Emergency Accessible Polling Place (EAPP}, to wit: PARTI GENERAL PROVISIONS SECTION 1. DEFINITION OF TERMS ~ As used in these General Instructions, the term: a, Accessible Polling Place (APP) - refers to the venue where the Electoral Board (EB) (Republic Act No. 10756) conducts election-related proceedings and where the voters cast their votes. The APP shall he located at the ground floor, preferably near the entrance of the building, and is free of any physical barriers and provided with necessary services, including assistive devices (Section 2 (j) of Republic Act No. 10366); b, Assistant Regional Election Director (ARED) - refers to the second highest official of the Commission in a region; ® AV ACT AUTHORING THE COMMISSION ON BLECTIONS TO ESTABLISH! PRECINCTS ASSIGNED TO ACCESSIBLE POLLING PLACES AXCLUSIVELY FOR PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES AND SENIOR CITZENS, Pebrucary 15, 2013 An.Act to Enhance the Mobility of Disabted Porsons by Requiring Certain Buildings, Insitutions, Bstablishments and Publio Ditties to install Facilities and Other Devices, February 25, 1983 “AN ACT PROVIDING FOR 1918 REHABILITATION, SELP DEVELOPMENT AND SELI-RELIANCE OF DISABLED PRRSON ‘AND THEIR INTEGRATION 1970 THE MAINSTREAM OP SOCIETY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES, March 24, 1:992 zh. Pp. . Heavily Pregnant - refers to those who are, at les Assistor — refers to a person who shall assist a person with disability or senior citizen availing of the EAPP, who in the EDCVL requires such assistance or manifestly needed such assistance on election day; Authorization Form — refers to the hereto attached document marked as Annex A, to be accomplished by a person with disability, senior citizen or heavily pregnant voter availing of the EAPP. The filled-out form shall give consent to the DESO EAPP/S-EAPP SS to: a) obtain the ballot from the designated polling place; b) bring such ballot to the EAPP where it will be accomplished; and c) return the same to the polling place where it was obtained for feeding to the Vote and Counting Machine (VCM); Clustered Precinct — refers to a grouping/merging of established precincts based on a clustering scheme adopted by the Commission for a particular election; COMELEC - refers to the Commission on Elections (Commission for brevity); Department of Education Supervisor Official (DESO)- refers to the principal of the school or other person appointed to assist the EB in ensuring the orderly and peaceful conduct of elections in a voting center; DESO EAPP/S-EAPP Support Staff (EAPP/E-EAPP SS) - refers to the person appointed to supervise the voting in the EAPP and S-EAPP; EAPP Voting Center (EAPP VC) ~ refers to an EAPP permanently established in a building used as a home or residence of senior citizens, whether administered by the government or a private institution; EAPP Voting Center Support Staff (EAPP VC SS) - refers to the person appointed to assist the Electoral Board (EB) in the EAPP VC; Election Officer/Acting Election Officer (EO/AEO) — refers to the highest official of the Commission in a district, city or municipality; Electoral Board (EB) ~ refers to the collective term for the Chairperson and members of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEI), Special Board of Election Inspectors (SBEI), Board of Election Tellers (BET), Special Board of Election Tellers (SBET) (Section 2 (c), Republic Act No. 10756}; . Emergency Accessible Polling Place (EAPP) ~ refers to a [class] room or makeshift/temporary polling place established at the ground of a voting center or outside of it but in close proximity thereto, where persons with disabilities, senior citizens and heavily pregnant voters falling under Section 2 (a) hereof may vote on election day; st, six (6) months on the family way; Non-Manifest Disability ~ refers to a type of disability which is not apparent from the physical appearance of a person; Person with Disability (PWD) - refers to a qualified voter who have long- term physical, mental, intellectual or sensory impairments which in interaction with various barriers may hinder their full and effective participation in the electoral processes on an equal basis with others (Section 2 (b), Republic Act No. 10366}; Polling place - refers to the place where the Board of Election Inspectors (now EB under Republic Act No. 10756) conducts its proceeding and where the voters cast their votes (Section 3 (I), Republic Act No, 8189); &