IF ELECTED: Pabling eyes scrapping of common poster areas

If elected into Congress, former Cebu Governor Pablo Garcia expressed the need to work on the scrapping of a provision of the Omnibus Election Code on designation of a common poster area.

Garcia, who is running for congressman of the second district of Cebu, said there are several laws that need to be amended and one of these is the election law.

Section 91 of the Omnibus Election Code provides for Comelec common poster areas.

The section states that, "whenever practicable, the Commission shall also designate and provide for a common poster area in strategic places in each town wherein candidates can announce and further their candidacy through posters, said space to be likewise allocated free of charge, equally and impartially by the Commission among all the candidates concerned."

It has corresponding penalties as provided under Section 264 which states that "any person found guilty of any election offense under this Code shall be punished with imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than six years and shall not be subject to probation."

In addition, the guilty party shall be sentenced to suffer disqualification to hold public office and deprivation of the right to suffrage.

Any political party found guilty shall pay a fine of not less than P10,000 which shall be imposed after criminal action has been instituted in which corresponding officials have been found guilty.

Garcia said that, "there are several laws perceived as good, but the effect of the implementation is impractical."

He stressed that people from the mountain barangays won''t go down just to take a look at who''s posted at the designated common poster areas.

"Sa eleksyon, ang kandidato maoy mopaila sa katawhan nga siya ninglansad pinaagi sa mga campaign posters nga mas barato ug ma-afford sa dili kaayo kwartahan nga kandidato kaysa television ug radio nga mahal," Garcia explained.

Also, one of the purposes for designating Comelec poster areas is to maintain cleanliness of the surroundings, he said.

Garcia also proposed that the amendments include bonds, with amount to be determined later, for every candidate to put up which will be used later on in cleaning up areas of campaign posters.

He cited that "limiting candidates'' campaign materials and posters only in specified areas is a deprivation of the freedom of speech and expression that is provided under the Philippine Constitution."

"Ang pagpamutang og posters maoy pagpahibalo nga ikaw nikandidato," Garcia added. - Gregg M. Rubio/MEEV