SK posts to remain vacant until 2016 polls

MANILA, Philippines - No appointment shall be made to fill vacancies in the Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) until the elections next year, the Commission on Elections and the Department of the Interior and Local Government said yesterday.

The implementing rules and regulations (IRR) of Republic Act 10656, which postpones the SK elections to the last Monday of October 2016, states that SK positions “shall remain vacant until the new set of officials have been duly elected and qualified.”

The IRR was issued on Thursday.

The SK polls, which had been twice postponed, was supposed to be held last April 25. It was moved to Oct. 31, 2016 to allow the poll body to focus on preparations for the local and national elections in May next year.

The IRR states that 10 percent of barangay funds for the SK shall be used “solely for youth development programs or projects” until the new set of SK officials assumes office.

Such programs include leadership training, employability skills training, value formation, citizenship and nation-building seminar, voter’s registration seminar, health services and adolescent reproductive health programs, out-of-school youth program, socio-cultural and sports development, climate change adaptation and disaster risk reduction management.

The Sangguniang Barangay member elected as chairman of the committee on women and family shall be chairman of the committee on youth and sports development in concurrent capacity.

The IRR also provides for the creation of a task force on youth development in each barangay. The task force members shall remain in office until new SK officials are elected.