The Commission on Elections (Comelec) clarified that delays in the official election results are due to pending transmissions from various provinces and overseas posts.
Comelec Commissioner Ernesto Maceda Jr. said on Monday night that the national canvassing cannot proceed until all provincial-level canvassing is completed. These include 83 provinces and 93 foreign posts, such as the UAE, where overseas Filipinos cast their votes.
“The reason nga kung bakit ang Comelec ay hindi naman pwedeng maglabas ng kahit anong resulta tungkol sa mga senatorial at party lists dahil we have to wait for the provinces na makumpuni ang resulta ng municipalities within their provinces, so that they themselves can have their own provincial canvass, which they will in turn send to us,” Maceda explained in an interview with ABS-CBN News.
Maceda also clarified that the Comelec website is not the official source of results. “It only reflected the election returns as they come in,” he said.
He urged candidates not to declare victory until the majority of the election returns are received. “Hindi ka pwede magproclaim ng kandidato until at least 90 percent of the returns are in,” he added.
Maceda noted that while some results from both local and international posts have already come in, the process must be completed before any proclamations can be made.
