EU election observers in PH: We observe, not to interfere

Observation, not interference, is the European Union (EU) election observation team's mission in the Philippines with the aim to "improve democracy."

- BETHEENA UNITE

This was stated by Chief Observer of the European Union Election Observation Mission (EU EOM) Marta Temido in a press conference on Friday, April 25, as she stressed that their deployment in Manila to observe the May 12 midterm elections is a common practice worldwide.

"So, why do we do this? Because enabling both international and national election observation is a hallmark of democratic governance. We observe one another-not to interfere, but to learn," Temido said.

"We do so to share experiences and to improve the quality of our electoral processes," she added.

The chief observer pointed out that their team is here not to "validate or legitimize the results." She said the team assesses elections against international and national standards for democratic elections, and against the laws of the Philippines and principles of good electoral practice.

"That is the spirit in which the European Union Election Observation Mission has come to the Philippines. We are not here to validate or legitimize the results. What matters to us is the process," Temido said.

"Our role is to observe, to assess, and to support democratic standards, impartiality, and independence-independently and without interfering in the process," Temido added.

Temido explained that the EU applies a long-term and comprehensive election observation methodology which allows them to assess every phase of the electoral process including the legal framework, performance of the election administration, registration of voters and candidates, the campaign-including campaign finance-the role of the media and social media, and the quality of information available to voters to make an informed choice.