"Huwag niyong tanggapin, huwag niyong iboto (Do not accept it, do not vote for them)."

This was the message of Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia during the Ceremonial Signing and Launching of the Committee on Kontra Bigay on Friday, Feb. 7.

The poll chief said that while it's difficult to counter the arguments of those who are tempted to accept offers to sell their votes, they would never encourage accepting it.

"Hinding-hindi po sasabihin ng Comelec na 'Tanggapin niyo na lang. pero wag niyo iboto' (The Comelec will never say, 'Just accept it, but don't vote for them')," Garcia said.

"Dahil kinabukasan ang ibinebenta natin (It's because we're selling our future)," he added.

Formerly a task force during the past elections, the Committee on Kontra Bigay is the poll body's the anti-vote buying/selling arm tasked to oversee and curb such incidents which usually occur at the height of election day.

Present during the event were poll commissioners Nelson J. Celis, Aimee Ferolino, Ernesto Maceda Jr. as Gen. Jimmy D. Larida, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) Vice Chief-of-staff, PNP Chief Dir. Gen. Francisco Marbil, Noel Bocaling, NBI Asst. Dir. for Intelligence and other civil society groups and stakeholders.

Garcia asked them to "make it difficult for them to buy votes."

He asked the public, especially the youth, the poor, as well as first time voters to have the courage to refuse these offers. He added all these efforts will be for nothing if they will continue selling their votes for a particular candidate.

Doing this, he said, would show that "we are mature people of a maturing democracy".

"Huwag tayong papayag na may nagtatake-advantage ng kahirapan natin (Let's not allow anyone to take advantage of our situation)," he added.

Vote buying, selling

Comelec defines vote-buying as the act of giving, offering, or promising anyone of money or anything of value; any office or employment; franchise or grant public or private; to make an expenditure directly or indirectly; cause an expenditure to be made to any person, association, corporation, entity, or community in order to induce anyone or the public in general to vote for or against any candidate or withhold his vote in the election.

Or to vote for or against any aspirant for the nomination or choice of a candidate in a convention or similar selection process of a political party.

Meanwhile, vote-selling is the act of asking or receiving, directly or indirectly, of money or anything of value, any office or employment, franchise or grant, public or private, or makes or offers to make an expenditure, directly or indirectly, for any of the abovementioned reasons.

Under the law, its penalties include:

• Imprisonment of of not less than one (1) year but not more than six (6) years, not subject to probation;
• Disqualification to hold public office and deprivation of the right of suffrage; and
• For political parties, a fine of not less than ten thousand pesos.