MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) warned candidates yesterday that it would apply the rules that cover manual polls to deter premature campaigning in the barangay elections on Oct. 28.
In a press briefing, Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. said the poll officials have decided to apply the provisions in the Omnibus Election Code in defining “candidates†and “campaigning†instead of Republic Act 9369 or the poll automation law.
“Just a warning to those who will file their COCs (certificates of candidacy) starting on Friday. In the poll automation law there was no premature campaigning because it was automated. Now, we can charge you for premature campaigning because it is manual election,†he noted.
Under the election code, candidates can campaign only during the election period, which starts the day after the last day of filing of COCs.
For the coming polls, the filing of COCs runs from Oct. 11 to 17 and the campaign period starts on Oct. 18.
With the automation of the elections in May 2010, the filing of COCs was set ahead of the start of the campaign period because the names of candidates are pre-printed on the ballots.
Brillantes said they have sought the opinion of the Comelec’s Law Department, which recommended that the rules on manual elections should be applied in the coming polls.
Comelec Commissioner Lui Guia said the printing of the 54 million official ballots for the barangay polls has been completed, ahead of the Oct. 18 target.
“We’ve just completed the printing 100 percent. We are now just verifying about 10 percent of the ballots to see if the serial numbers are okay,†he said in a press briefing.
Guia noted that 90 percent of the ballots have been turned over to the Comelec’s packing and shipping committee. These will then be forwarded to the deployment committee, which is supervising the delivery of the documents to the voting centers.
Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) chairman Benjamin Valbuena said yesterday that public school teachers who will boycott poll duties during the Oct. 28 barangay elections will not face sanctions as long as they do not sign assignment documents from the Comelec.
“Election service is supposed to be voluntary,†Valbuena said.
Valbuena said public school teachers have been demoralized by the pork barrel scandal and are demanding an increase in the P2,000 honorarium that the Comelec has allocated for each teacher to serve as member of the Board of Election Tellers in the coming polls. – With Cecille Suerte Felipe, Ding Cervantes, Ricky Bautista, Ben Serrano