The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is hoping Congress can complete the law postponing the Nov. 2 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) before candidates are scheduled to file their certificates of candidacy (COCs) later this month.
Comelec Chairperson George Garcia said Thursday that the COC filing period from Sept. 28 to Oct. 5 will proceed unless the postponement measure becomes law before the scheduled start.
“The filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COC) is scheduled for Sept. 28. Hopefully, the law becomes clear before that date; otherwise, the filing of COCs will proceed as planned,” Garcia said in a radio interview.
Garcia said the poll body cannot suspend its preparations despite the likelihood that the BSKE will be postponed because the measure still needs to complete the legislative and executive processes before taking effect.
The House of Representatives on Wednesday adopted the Senate approved version of the measure, which seeks to move the BSKE to November 2028 and give barangay and youth officials five year terms.
The measure still has to be transmitted to Malacañang for President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr.’s action. Marcos has said he will review the bill’s provisions before deciding whether to sign it.
Garcia said the Comelec must continue preparing for the Nov. 2 elections in case the President does not sign the measure, vetoes it, or the law is challenged before the Supreme Court and the court issues a temporary restraining order.
He said stopping preparations prematurely could leave the poll body unprepared if the scheduled election ultimately pushes through.
Teacher training is among the preparations that the Comelec has continued, particularly because the BSKE will use a manual voting process.
Garcia said many teachers are more familiar with automated elections, while newer teachers may not have experience with manual elections.
“Regarding teacher training: teachers are accustomed to automated elections. Although, the BSKE is a manual election, many new teachers are not familiar with the manual process. Training needs to start immediately. We are mobilizing one million teachers; that isn’t something that can be covered in just a week of training,” he said.
The Comelec is also preparing for the deployment of election equipment and other paraphernalia, a process that Garcia said requires considerable time.
“Secondly, there is the deployment of equipment. That process takes a very long time. Once the equipment is deployed, it cannot be recalled; doing so would be too costly. It needs to be shipped out by the first week of October,” Garcia said.
Garcia said these logistical preparations must continue while the postponement measure awaits final action, leaving the Comelec to prepare for both the scheduled Nov. 2 polls and the possibility that they will be moved to 2028.
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