FACT-CHECK: No irregularities with Starlink devices stored at a house in Davao City

CLAIM: Election paraphernalia stored in a residential property in Davao City

RATING: FALSE

A Facebook user falsely claimed that election paraphernalia were being stored illegally in a private property in Barangay Buhangin, Davao City.

Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Garcia confirmed in an interview with PressOne.PH that there were information technology devices stored by a service provider at a residence in Davao City, but did not see irregularities.

“‘Yan ‘yung mga transmission device kumbaga sa TV, antenna ‘yun. Wala pong kinalaman sa pag susuma-total ng boto, pagta-transmit ng kung ano ‘yung mga laman na boto,” he said.

(These devices are like antennas. These do not have anything to do with vote counting or the transmission of the contents of ballots.)

Garcia also explained why such devices were stored by the service provider in a residential property.

“Ang problema kasi doon sa mga lugar … walang gustong mag warehouse nang araw lang. Gusto six months to one year. E paano naman ‘yung araw lang na nag-stay doon e, tapos kinakailangan na i-deploy na kaagad,” he said.

(The problem is no one wants to do short-term leases for warehouses. They want six months to a year. What if it will only be used for a few days as the devices need to be deployed immediately.)

Comelec released a statement confirming the presence of 10 sets of Starlink devices, solar panels, and batteries in a residential property in Davao City. 

The election body said iOne Resources Joint Venture and Ardent Networks, Inc. are in charge of the deployment and storage of the devices, as stated in Sections 3.1 and 3.5 of their contract.

The contract signing was held on April 30, 2024 at the Palacio del Gobernador in Intramuros, Manila.

As of writing, the post has reached 6,900 reactions and 2,200 shares on Facebook. Vergel Villarba & Michael Hermoso-Bautista 

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