Election watchdog Kontra Daya urged the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to investigate the alleged red-tagging of some candidates and party-list groups during this year's elections.
"Kontra Daya has documented several cases of red-tagging of certain candidates and party-list groups on the eve of and on election day," the group posted on its Twitter page on Monday, May 9.
"Kontra Daya calls on Comelec, particularly its task force against ‘fake news,’ to investigate red-tagging as this has been branded as the most dangerous form of disinformation during the elections," it added.
Kontra Daya has documented several cases of red-tagging of certain candidates and party-list groups on the eve of and on election day. The perpetrators include the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which is supposed to be non-partisan.#KontraDaya#VoteReportPH pic.twitter.com/eoVgPcx8Ur
— Kontra Daya (@kontradaya) May 9, 2022
The group said that "the perpetrators include the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), which is supposed to be non-partisan."
"On the eve of the elections, AFP units conducted a 'discreet text blast' asking uniformed personnel and their families not to vote for certain partylist groups and senatorial candidates," it said.
"While red-tagging during the election season has happened in the past, what appears new this election cycle is the intensity and the brazenness of the attacks, to the point where official channels are now being used with impunity," it added.
Meanwhile, the group also gave their initial assessment on the conduct of this year's general elections.
"The first seven hours of today's election have been marred with disinformation, red-tagging, malfunctioning vote counting machines, and disenfranchisement to name a few," it said in a statement.
The group said it also received reports of delayed opening of polling centers, with voters queuing for hours.