600 transferee voters questioned

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CEBU CITY — More than 600 individuals who transferred their voter registration to Mandaue City may face possible exclusion from the master list after a petition was filed before the Municipal Trial Court in Cities (MTCC), questioning their residency status.

The petition alleged that these voters were registered despite not being a resident in the barangay or precinct where they are listed, raising concerns about potential voter fraud ahead of the May 2025 elections.

Former Barangay Subangdaku chairman Ernie Manatad, who is running for city councilor under Team Mandaue of former mayor Jonas Cortes, filed the petition on Friday.

He claimed that an investigation conducted by his team revealed that the registered transferee voters could not be located at their declared addresses, leading them to suspect irregularities in the voter registration process.

Manatad said his team conducted verification efforts between Dec. 27, 2024 and Jan. 20, 2025 to check the validity of the voters in question.

They coordinated with purok leaders and residents to confirm whether the individuals actually lived at the addresses listed in the official voters list.

Their findings indicated that a significant number of transferees, particularly in the villages of Pagsabungan, Basak, Ibabao, Opao and Tabok, were not known to residents in those areas.

Some listed addresses were either vacant or occupied by families who claimed to have no knowledge of the registered voters.

Manatad is unsure if a specific group is behind these registrations.

Manatad expressed concern that these irregular registrations could affect the outcome of the elections, emphasizing the importance of ensuring that only legitimate residents are allowed to vote.

He pointed out that fraudulent voter registrations undermine the credibility of the electoral process and could be used to ma-nipulate election results.

Under the Omnibus Election Code and Republic Act 8189, a voter must be a resident of the place where they intend to vote for at least six months before an election.

The law also allows any registered voter, political party, or election authority to challenge questionable registrations before the proper court.

Lawyer Carly Guillermo, Manatad's legal counsel, said they filed the petition to uphold election integrity and prevent ineligible voters from influencing the results.

She also said that if the court grants their petition, the names of these alleged "flying voters" would be removed from the master list, preventing them from casting ballots in the upcoming elections.

Guillermo added that their team is also considering filing election offense cases against individuals and officials who may have facilitated the questionable registrations, particularly those who issued residency certifications without proper verification.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is tasked with ensuring that only qualified voters are included in the official list.

Under Comelec Resolution 10963, voter applicants must present valid identification, such as a PhilSys National ID, postal ID, or a barangay-issued certificate with a photo.

However, Manatad's camp argued that the current verification process has loopholes that allow fraudu-lent registrations to take place.

Mandaue City has 236,668 registered voters for the 2025 elections. If the court grants the petition, the city's voter count may decrease, potentially impacting the electoral landscape.