REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES

COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS
lntramuros, Manila

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS
FOR THE BOARD OF
CANVASSERS (BOC) ON THE
ABAS, Sher iff M . Chairman
CONSTITUTION,
GUANZON, Ma. Commissioner
COMPOSITION A.ND
Rowena Amelia V.
APPOINTMENT; Commissioner
CONSOLIDATION/CANVASS; INTING, Socorro B.
CASQUEJO, Marlon S. Commissioner
AND TRANSMISSION OF Commissioner
KHO, Antonio T. Jr.
VOTES/ CANVASS IN Commissioner
FEROLINO, Aimee P.
CONNECTION WITH THE 09
MAY 2022 NATIONAL AND
LOCAL ELECTIONS.
X---------------------------------------X
PROMULGATED: 17 November 2021

10731
RESOLUTION NO. --------

WHEREAS, it is the policy of the State to ensure safe, free, orderly,

honest, peaceful, credible, gender responsive, socially inclusive and
informed elections, and other similar electoral exercises by improving
on the election process and adopting systems, which shall involve the
use of an automated election system that will ensure the secrecy and
sanctity of the ballots and all election, consolidation and
transmission of votes/ canvass in order that the process shall be
transparent and credible and that the results shall be fast, accurate
and reflective of the genuine will of the people.

WHEREAS, considering the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic,

there is a need to set forth herein health and safety standards and
protocols to mitigate, if not prevent, the transmission of the infectious
disease during the conduct of the elections;

WHEREAS, there is a need to provide General Instructions

Governing the Constitution, Composition and Appointment;

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Consolidation/Canvass; and Transmission of Votes/Canvass 1n
connection with the May 09, 2022 National and Local Elections:

NOW THEREFORE, pursuant to its authority under

the Constitution, the Omnibus Election Code, Republic Act No.
9369, and other election laws, the Commission on Elections
(Commission) RESOLVED, as it hereby RESOLVES, to promulgate
the following General Instructions Governing the Constitution,
Composition, and Appointment; Consolidation/Canvass and
Transmission of Votes/Canvass in connection with the May 09, 2022
National and Local Elections:

ARTICLE I
CONSTITUTION, COMPOSITION AND APPOINTMENT OF THE
BOARD OF CANVASSERS

SEC. 1. Scope. - These rules shall apply to the constitution,

corn.position, and appointment of the Municipal Board of Canvassers
(MBOC), City Board of Canvassers (CBOC), District Board of
Canvassers (DBOC), and Provincial Board of Canvassers (PBOC), for
purposes of the May 09, 2022 National and Local Elections (NLE),
except in the cases of local absentee voting and overseas voting,
which are covered by separate resolutions.

SEC. 2. Composition of the Board of Canvassers (BOC). -

There shall be a Board of Canvassers (BOC) to be appointed by the
Commission in each municipality, city, district, province, and in the
Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

a. MBOC. - The MBOC shall be composed of the Municipal

Election Officer (Municipal EO) or a representative of the
Commission holding permanent appointment, as
Chairperson; the Municipal Treasurer, as Vice-Chairperson;
and the District School Supervisor, or in the absence of the
latter, the most senior in rank Principal of the school district,
duly designated as such by the District Supervisor as
Member-Secretary.

b. CBOC. - The CBOC shall be composed of the City Election

Officer (City EO) or a lawyer of the Commission holding
permanent appointment, as Chairperson; the City
Prosecutor, as Vice-Chairperson; and the Schools Division
Superintendent, as Member-Secretary.

In cities within the National Capital Region (NCR) and other

highly urbanized cities with more than one ( 1) City EO, the

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 Regional Election Director (RED) shall designate the City EO
who shall act as Chairperson.

In cities outside the NCR and with more than one (1) City
EO, the Provincial Election Supervisor (PES) shall designate
the City EO who shall act as Chairperson.

c. DBOC for the Legislative District of Taguig-Pateros. -

The DBOC for the legislative district of Taguig-Pateros shall
be composed of the City EO or a lawyer of the Commission
holding permanent appointment, as Chairperson; the City
Prosecutor, as Vice-Chairperson; and the Schools Division
Superintendent, as Member-Secretary.

d. PBOC. - The PBOC shall be composed of the Provincial

Election Supervisor (PES) or a lawyer of the Commission
holding permanent appointment, as Chairperson; the
Provincial Prosecutor, as Vice-Chairperson; and the Schools
Division Superintendent, as Member-Secretary.

SEC. 3. Boards for Newly Created Political Subdivisions. -

The RED concerned shall constitute the BOC and appoint the
members thereof for the first election in a newly created province,
city, or municipality in case the officials who shall act as members
thereof have not yet assumed their duties and functions. The PES or
Election Officer (EO) of the newly created province, city, or
municipality, as the case may be, shall, not later than three (3) days
from the promulgation of this Resolution, submit to the Office of the
Deputy Executive Director for Operations (ODEDO), the
recommended officials for appointments as members of the BOC,
subject to the approval of the Commission En Banc.

SEC. 4. Honoraria of the Chairperson and Members of the

BOC. - The Chairperson and Members of the BOC shall receive an
honorarium of Fourteen Thousand Pesos (Php14,000.00) each for
services rendered.

SEC. 5. Substitution of Chairperson and Members of the

BOC. - In case of non-availability, absence, disqualification due to
relationship, or incapacity for any cause of the Chairperson and
Members of the BOC, the following shall appoint the substitute:

1. The PES, for the CBOC and MBOC in the province;

2. The RED, for the PBOC in the region;

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 3. The RED of NCR, for the DBOC, CBOC, and MBOC in the
region;

4. The RED of Region IX and Region XI for CBOC of Zamboanga

City and Davao City, respectively.

In case of substitution of the Chairperson of the PBOC/CBOC,

an official or lawyer with permanent appointment of the Commission
shall be appointed. In case of MBOC, a representative of the
Commission holding permanent appointment shall be appointed.

With respect to the other members of the BOC, the following

shall be appointed as substitute in the following order of preference:

In the case of the PBOC:

1. The Provincial Auditor;

2. The Register of Deeds;

3. The Clerk of Court nominated by the Executive Judge of the

Regional Trial Court; and

4. Any other available appointive provincial official.

In the case of the CBOC, the officials in the city corresponding

to those enumerated above.

In the absence or disqualification of the Vice-Chairperson of the

MBOC:

1. The Municipal Administrator;

2. The Municipal Assessor;

3. The Clerk of Court of the Municipal Trial Court; or

4. Any other available appointive municipal officials.

As substitute of the two (2) members of the DBOC of Taguig­

Pateros, the next ranking prosecutor or school's division
superintendent in the district, as the case may be, shall be appointed.

All appointments for substitution shall be in writing, stating

therein the reason or reasons for the substitution. Within twenty­
four (24) hours from the issuance of the appointment, the issuing
authority shall furnish copies of the appointment to the Office of the

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Deputy Executive Director for Operations (ODEDO) and to the
appointee.

SEC. 6. Officials in an Acting Capacity and Officers-In­

Charge. - Officials designated in an acting capacity, or performing
functions which involve the exercise of discretion to the
offices/positions enumerated by law as Chairperson, Vice­
Chairperson, or Member of the BOC may be appointed thereto.

SEC. 7. Secretary of the BOC. - The Principal, District

Supervisor, Schools Division Superintendent, as the case may be,
shall act as Secretary of the BOC, unless otherwise ordered by the
Commission. The Secretary of the BOC shall prepare the Minutes of
Canvass (Annex "A") of the BOC by recording therein the proceedings
and such other incidents or matters relevant to the canvass.

SEC. 8. Supervision and Control. - The Commission shall

have direct control and supervision over the BOC and may motu
proprio relieve, for cause, at any time, any member thereof and
designate the substitute.

SEC. 9. Consolidation and Canvassing System Operators

(CCSO). - Each BOC shall be assisted by an information technology­
capable person authorized to operate the Consolidation and
Canvassing System (CCS), to be known as the Consolidation and
Canvassing System Operator (CCSO). The CCSO shall be designated
by the Commission from among the deputized agencies and
instrumentalities of the national government holding permanent
appointments.

The CCSO must not be related within the fourth civil degree of
consanguinity or affinity to any member of the BOC or to the
Reception and Custody Group (RCG) or to any candidate whose votes
shall be canvassed by the BOC where the CCSO is assigned.

The CCSO shall be designated by the PES concerned in the case

of the MBOC and CBOC that are outside the NCR; and by the RED,
in the case of the MBOC, CBOC, and DBOC in the NCR, Davao City,
and Zamboanga City. The RED concerned shall designate the CCSO
in the case of the PBOC in regions outside the NCR.

The honorarium of the CCSO shall be the same as that of the

members of the BOC.

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 SEC. 10. Reception and Custody Group (RCG). - Each BOC
shall constitute anRCG for the reception and safekeeping of the VCM
main SD cards, or CDs of the CCS and other documents intended for
the BOC. There shall be one (1)RCG for every BOC.

The RCG shall be composed of three (3) members who are

government appointive officials holding permanent appointments.
They shall be designated by the concerned Chairperson of the BOC
and shall receive an honorarium of Ten Thousand Pesos (Php
10,000.00). TheRCG members shall not be related within the fourth
civil degree of consanguinity or affinity to each other or to the
Chairperson or any member of the BOC, CCSO or to any candidate
whose votes will be canvassed by the BOC.

In no case shall LGU employees be appointed or designated as

RCG.

In cities with more than one (1) legislative district, one (1)RCG
for every legislative district may be constituted.

In municipalities, cities- or legislative districts with more than

five hundred (500) clustered precincts, one (1) additional RCG may
be constituted in accordance with the following ratio:

Clustered Additional No.

precincts ofRCG

501 to 600 1

601 or more 2

SEC. 11. BOC Support Staff. - The BOC Chairperson shall

appoint support staff to assist the BOC in the performance of its
duties, in accordance with the following table:

For M/CBOC:

Clustered No. of
precincts M/CBOC
Support Staff

1 to 500 3

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 501 to 600 4

601 or more 5

For PBOC:

No. of No. of PBOC

M/CBOC Support Staff

1 to 10 3

11 to 20 4

21 or more 5

The support staff shall be entitled to an honorarium of Five

Thousand Pesos (Php 5,000.00).

Plantilla casuals, contracts of service, job orders or permanent

employees may be appointed or designated as BOC support staff,
except employees of the local government unit regardless of the
nature of appointment.

The support staff shall not be related within the fourth civil
degree of consanguinity or affinity to the Chairperson or any member
of the BOC, CCSO, RCG or to any candidate whose votes will be
canvassed by the BOC.

SEC. 12. Absence of a Regular Member of a BOC. - In case a

regular member of the BOC is absent, the members present shall first
verify whether notice has been served on the absent member. In case
no such notice was sent, one shall be immediately served to the
absent member. If the latter cannot be located or the whereabouts
are unknown, the absent member shall be substituted in accordance
with Section 5 of this Resolution. These facts shall be recorded in the
Minutes of the BOC. As soon as the absent member appears, the
substitute member's seat shall be relinquished in favor of the regular
member of the BOC.

SEC. 13. Prohibited Degree of Relationship. - The

Chairperson and Members of the BOC shall not be related within the
fourth civil degree of consanguinity or affinity to each other, the
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CCSO, the RCG, Support Staff, or to any candidate whose votes will
be canvassed by said BOC.

SEC. 14. Notice of Disqualification. - The Chairperson or any

Member of the BOC who is disqualified to serve for any reason shall
immediately notify in writing the appointing authority concerned,
who shall in turn, immediately appoint a substitute in accordance
with Section 5 of this Resolution.

SEC. 15. Prohibition Against Leaving Official Station. -

During the period beginning May 9, 2022 until the proclamation of
the winning candidates, no Chairperson, Member or substitute
member of the BOC shall be transferred, assigned or detailed outside
the official station nor shall leave said station without prior authority
of the Commission.

SEC.. 16. Feigned Illness. - Any member of the BOC feigning

illness in order to be substituted on election day until the
proclamation of the winning candidates shall be guilty of an election
offense.

SEC. 1 7. Incapacity of a Regular Member of the BOC. - In

case of sickness or serious injury of a regular Member of the BOC, a
medical certificate duly issued by any government hospital, shall be
required attesting to the incapacity of said Member. Upon
submission of the medical certificate, a substitute shall be appointed
in accordance with Section 5 of this Resolution. Said medical
certificate shall be recorded in and form part of the Minutes of the
BOC.

SEC. 18. Quorum. - A majority of all members of the BOC shall

constitute a quorum for the transaction of its official business and to
render a decision.

SEC. 19. Insurance and Other Benefits of the Chairperson

and Members of the Board of Canvassers (BOC), CCSO, Reception
and Custody Group (RCG) and their Support Staff. - Persons
serving as Chairperson and Members of the Board of Canvassers
(BOC), CCSO, Reception and Custody Group (RCG) and their Support
Staff shall be entitled to the following:
a. Death Bene.fits - The amount of Five Hundred Thousand
Pesos (PS00,000.00) shall be awarded to the beneficiaries
of persons who died due to risks related to their function
as Chairperson and Members of the BOC, CCSO, RCG and
Support Staff;
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 b. Medical Assistance - An amount not exceeding Two
Hundred Thousand Pesos (P200,000.00) shall be awarded
to persons who suffered injury or illness related to their
abovementioned BOC function;

c. Legal Indemnification Package - An equitable legal

indemnification package for the Chairperson and Members
of the BOC, CCSO, RCG and Support Staff who have been
parties in any administrative, civil or criminal action, suit
or proceeding by reason of or on the occasion of their
performance of canvassing functions is hereby established
in the form of:

1. Legal assistance;
11. Lawyer's fees;
111. Indemnification for legal costs and expenses
reasonably incurred; and,
1v. Other forms of legal protection.
The legal indemnification shall not cover any action or suit
initiated by the claimant in the latter's personal capacity
or on behalf of the Commission, unless such action,
proceeding or claim was authorized by the Commission.
d. Funds for Legal Indemnification Package. The amount of
Fifty Thousand Pesos (PS0,000.00) as legal
indemnification package shall be made available to each
claimant, subject to prevailing rules.

I. Committee on Claims and Assessment (CCA). Claims for other

benefits and legal indemnification package shall be filed with
the Committee on Claims and Assessment thru the Election
Officer (for CBOCs/MBOCs) or Provincial Election Supervisor
(for PBOCs). The CCA shall be composed of the Deputy
Executive Director for Operations as Chairperson and the
Directors IV of the Law Department, Personnel Department and
Finance Services Department as Members.

II. Legal Assistance. Persons serving as Chairperson and

Members of the BOC, CCSO, RCG and Support Staff are hereby
authorized to engage the services of government or private
lawyer immediately upon receipt of a notice that an
administrative, civil or criminal action has been filed against
them, in relation to their canvassing duties and functions.

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III. Lawyer's Fees. - In the engagement of the services of a
government lawyer, no claims for lawyer's fees shall be
awarded.
Should the claimant prefer to engage the services of a private
lawyer, the Commission, upon the recommendation of the CCA
or the concerned national government agency shall bear the
reasonable lawyer's fees of the counsel of choice, which, in no
case, shall exceed the maximum limit of the legal
indemnification package herein provided; otherwise, the former
shall bear the excess.
In the event that private lawyers accept the case "pro bona", no
claims for lawyer's fees shall be awarded.
IV. Legal Costs and Other Reasonable Expenses. - Legal costs shall
constitute the expenses directly incurred by reason of the case,
such as but not limited to:

a. Filing fees, if applicable;

b. Mailing;
c. Notarial fees; and
d. Gathering and photocopy of evidence.
A reasonable amount from the legal indemnification package
shall be allocated by the Commission for the payment of the
actual expenses incurred for legal costs and other reasonable
expenses.
V. Other Forms ofLegal Protection. - The claimant may avail of any
legal protection and remedies available under existing laws by
filing a request for legal protection with the CCA.
If, upon evaluation, the CCA finds the request to be meritorious
due to existing or imminent threat, violence, harassment or
intimidation against the claimant or any immediate member of
claimant's family, it shall recommend to the Commission En
Banc, the deputation of law enforcement agencies to provide
security to the claimant and/ or claimant's immediate family
member within a specified period of time or until such time that
the condition for the protection no longer exists.
VI. Entitlement to Legal Indemnification Package. -The Claimant
shall be allowed reimbursement for reasonable legal expenses
incurred if found not guilty of an election offense or exonerated
from civil, criminal or administrative case filed against
him/her, in relation to canvassing duties and functions,

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 111. Power cable of the printer; and

1v. USB cable to connect the laptop and printer.

g. BGAN (if applicable):

1. BGAN Antenna;

11. Battery;

111. SIM Card (installed);

lV. RJ 45 LAN cable;

V. Electrical cord extension;

Vl. Power adapter; and

Vll. Power cable.

h. Memory Card Reader;

1. Security plastic seal; and

J. Extra toner;

5. Retrieve the envelopes containing the system's username and

password which shall be in the custody of the Chairperson of
the BOC, and the USB tokens for each Member of the BOC
which shall be distributed among themselves; and
6. Retrieve the CCS laptop from its box and place the CCS
laptop properly on top of the table.

SEC. 33. Procedures for Canvassing. - Immediately after

convening, the BOC shall undertake the following canvassing
procedures:

I. INITIALIZATION PROCEDURES

The CCSO shall:

a. Plug the power cord of the laptop to the extension cord;

b. Plug the extension cord to the electrical outlet or

generator, when necessary;

c. Turn on the laptop by pressing the power button;

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d. Connect the printer cable to the USB port of the laptop
and the power cable of the printer to the extension cord;

e. Tum on the printer by pressing the power button;

f. Ensure sufficient quantity of paper in the printer feeder;

g. The screen of the CCS laptop will display a

message, "Starting Consolidation and Canvassing
System. Please Wait.";

h. The screen will display a window to select a certificate

with message, "Select a certificate to authenticate yourself
to xxxx.ccs..." with CANCEL and OK buttons;

1. Click OK button;

J. The screen will display the WELCOME page of the CCS.

This page contains the log in window to access the
system;

k. The CCSO shall direct the Chairperson to enter in the

USERNAME the Chairperson's Login User and the Login
User PASSWORD on the text fields. Click the "LOGIN"
button;

1. A message, "Please insert a valid token" with CANCEL

and NEXT buttons. Insert the token of the Chairperson;

m. A TOKEN VALIDATOR window will be displayed with 1/2

at the upper right portion. The Chairperson shall enter
in the USERNAME the Chairperson's Login User and the
TOKEN PASSWORD. Thereafter, click "NEXT". A
message, "Token validated successfully, please remove
token. "will be displayed;

n. A message, "Please insert a valid token" with CANCEL

and NEXT buttons. Remove the USB security token of the
Chairperson and insert the USB security token of the
Vice-Chairperson;

o. A TOKEN VALIDATOR window will be displayed with 2/2

at the upper right portion. The Vice-Chairperson shall
enter in the USERNAME the Vice-Chairperson's Login
User and the TOKEN PASSWORD. Thereafter, click
"NEXT". A message, "Token validated successfully." will
be displayed. Remove the USB security token of the Vice­
Chairperson;

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