Comelec anti-illegal poster teams fan out to North Mindanao

CAGAYAN DE ORO CITY—Commission on Elections (Comelec) teams with a mission to remove illegal campaign materials have spread out to areas in Northern Mindanao.

Noli Pipo, Comelec Northern Mindanao director, said election officers were also ordered to list the names of candidates violating the campaign rules “for appropriate legal action.”

Northern Mindanao includes the provinces of Bukidnon, Misamis Oriental, Lanao del Norte and Camiguin and the cities of Cagayan, Gingoog, Malaybalay, Valencia and Iligan.

Pipo acknowledged that enforcing campaign rules, particularly on campaign posters and streamers, was like a cat-and-mouse game.

“It has been a pattern that the closer the elections get, the more campaign materials are posted everywhere,” he said. “It is difficult to monitor as politicians try to make sure voters recall their names,” he added.

While Comelec teams enforce the rules on posters and other campaign materials, Pipo said they should observe protocol in their operations.

“They should not operate without the presence of the police for their safety,” he said. Bobby Lagsa, Inquirer Mindanao