DEPUTY Speaker Rufus Rodriguez on Thursday urged the House of Representatives (HOR) and the Senate to now prepare for the canvassing of presidential and vice-presidential votes to be cast in Monday’s elections.

Rodriguez said the two chambers should make arrangements with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) for the smooth and expeditious transmission of certificates of canvass from provinces and independent cities to Congress.

As in the past, for the sake of transparency, a receiving transmission should be installed in the House so Congress would have an advance electronic copy of the election results, the representative of Cagayan de Oro’s second district said.

“There should be a mechanism for expediting provincial and city results sending to Congress in case of unreasonable or suspicious delay,” Rodriguez said.

He added that Congress leaders should meet with representatives of presidential and vice-presidential candidates and their political parties on the conduct of a speedy canvass.

He pointed out that based on their calendar of sessions, the House and the Senate have only 12 days, including one weekend, to finish the vote tabulation and declare the winning presidential and vice-presidential candidates.

“We hope we could complete the canvas and declare the winners within that short period,” he said.

Congress is scheduled to reconvene on May 23 and adjourn its third and last regular session on June 3.

Rodriguez said the canvassing mandate of the legislature is provided in Section 4 of Article Vll of the Constitution on the Executive Department.

He quoted the pertinent part of the section: “The returns of every election for President and Vice-President, duly certified by the board of canvassers of each province or city, shall be transmitted to the Congress, directed to the President of the Senate. Upon receipt of the certificates of canvass, the President of the Senate shall, not later than thirty days after the day of the election, open all certificates in the presence of the Senate and the House of Representatives in joint public session, and the Congress, upon determination of the authenticity and due execution thereof in the manner provided by law, canvass the votes.”

Section 4 further provides: “The person having the highest number of votes shall be proclaimed elected, but in case two or more shall have an equal and highest number of votes, one of them shall forthwith be chosen by the vote of a majority of all the Members of both Houses of the Congress, voting separately.”

Rodriguez said the session of Congress as a canvassing body is to be presided over by the Speaker of the House and the Senate President.

Since Senate President Vicente Sotto lll is a candidate for vice president, “we leave it to his sound discretion and judgment on what to do,” the solon pointed out.