on a being Volunteer Poll Watcher

The election here in cebu city took place in my school when i was in elementary. We had several seminars before the election. It was a very nice experience. It was my first time to be a volunteer poll watcher, a non-partisan group CCIMPEL in coordination with Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV). I am a member of the Parish Youth Coordinating Council and so they were the ones who influenced me to join but aside from that it was MY CHOICE to be a volunteer.

A day before the election that was may 13, I was in the church to help out with the Voter's assistance center where they can ask for their precinct no. and where it is located. We went home at 10:40pm but i really had a hard time sleeping since my back is aching because i wasn't able to lean or lye down. I was asleep at about 3:00am so i only have 1 1/2 hour sleep since our assembly time is 6:00am.

Being a first time volunteer in the election was good though from the start of the election hours there are some small trouble that happened in the precinct that I am assigned with. The election should start at 7:00 am but then we started at 8:00 since the Voter's list that should be posted outside the precinct was left in the COMELEC so the chairman have to go and get it. There are several people who arrived and were nagging why the voting started so late. So, I have to explain to them of what had happened. But gosh, they tested my patience since they were really inconsiderate. Though the chairman, the comelec and the voters have lapses of their own. Eventually, the voting became peaceful and those impatient and inconsiderate voters were gone.

At 3:00pm the voting was over. The Board of Election Inspectors were doing the counting of votes and tally them. And so, the election was over in my precinct at around 3:55am.

The experience was really stressful but i find it very accomplishing to help the society in attaining a clean, peaceful, and unbiased election.