ISTAMBAY SA MINDANAO

If the Comelec figures are reliable, Mindanao accounts for around 25 percent of the country’s total voters as shown by this report by MindaNews’ Carolyn Arguillas:

DAVAO CITY (MindaNews/30 April) — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has
yet to release an updated statistical data on registered voters for the 2007
elections but based on the 2004 figures, Mindanao’s six regions would account
for at least 10 million voters this year.

The Comelec’s website posted statistics as of April 28, 2004, in preparation
for the May 10 polls then. The state-run Philippine Information Agency
regional office here does not have the updated figures on the region it is
covering and is also awaiting Comelec’s list, a check with PIA Davao showed. Based on the 2004 records of Comelec, Mindanao had a total of 9.9 million out
of the country’s 43.5 million registered voters then.

Of its six regions, Southeastern Mindanao, comprising the three Davao
provinces and Compostela Valley and the cities within the region – Davao,
Panabo, Tagum, Digos — had the most number of voters, at 2.1 million, in the
2004 elections.

Northern Mindanao, which comprises Bukidnon, Camiguin, Lanao del Norte,
Misamis Occidental and Misamis Oriental and the cities of Cagayan de Oro,
Malaybalay, Valencia, Iligan, Ozamiz, Oroquieta, Gingoog and Tangub, followed
with 2.06 million.

Southwestern Mindanao, comprising South Cotabato, Sarangani, Sultan Kudarat
and North Cotabato and the cities of General Santos, Koronadal, Tacurong,
Kidapawan and Cotabato, had 1.8 million voters as of 2004.

Western Mindanao, which comprises the three Zamboanga provinces and Isabela,
had 1.6 million voters as of the 2004 elections; Caraga, which comprises the
two Agusans and two Surigaos and the cities of Butuan, Bislig and Surigao, had
1.1 million voters while the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) had
1.05 million voters during the same period.

In February this year, House Resolution 1540 urged Comelec to post the
registered voters’ list on a nationwide scale “in order to ensure transparency
and avoid the disenfranchisement of millions of voters who might not find
their names or their precincts or their polling booths on the day of voting on
May 14. (Carolyn O. Arguillas/MindaNews)