MANILA -- Various public utility firms are ready to ensure the successful and orderly conduct of the midterm elections on Monday.
In a statement on Friday, Globe Telecom said it has optimized its network to ensure swift transmission of election data.
“All SIM cards provisioned for election use have passed the quality assurance tests conducted by Smartmatic,” Globe’s statement read.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) had purchased at least 97,000 vote counting machines from Smartmatic last year.
For its part, PLDT Inc. provided its assistance in setting up the transparency servers of election watchdog, Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), which will be used for the transmission of election results. The PPCRV will deploy around 300,000 volunteers in more than 85,000 clustered precincts in 36,000 voting centers all over the country.
Meanwhile, the Manila Electric Company (Meralco) earlier said that it has more than 150 generator sets on standby to provide basic lighting to polling and canvassing places in case of unexpected power interruptions.
Around 300 floodlights will also be ready for deployment and use in case of emergencies. However, the power distribution firm advised polling centers to bring backup lights as precautionary measure.
On election day, Meralco will have 300 responding crews on duty who will be working 24/7 to ensure that it is prepared to respond to any eventualities.
The firm said it has concluded inspections of polling and canvassing centers within its franchise area and made recommendations to the respective school and building administrators to address potential problems. (PNA)
