Pacquiao: Defer barangay polls in December and use P8B budget for pandemic aid

Sen. Manny Pacquiao. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines — Senator Manny Pacquiao on Wednesday said he backs the postponement of barangay elections set in December this year and reallocation of the P8-billion budget for it to fund the government’s pandemic response and economic recovery efforts.

Pacquiao noted that the barangay elections will be conducted barely seven months after the May 9 polls, which he thinks would force the government to spend money on it.

“Mag-eelection ng May 9, magkano ang gagastusin ng gobyerno? Tapos mag-eelection uli ng December siguro mas malaki talaga ang gagastusin natin. Nasa period pa tayo ng recovery, hindi pa tayo nakakrecover. Sayang naman ‘yung more or less P8 billion na gagastusin natin for barangay election,” he said in a press briefing in Tarlac City.

(We will have our elections on May 9 and then another election in December. Our expenses would be big. We are still in a period of recovery. We have not yet recovered from the pandemic. What a waste if more or less P8 billion will be spent for the barangay election.)

“Mabuti pa siguro ‘yung P8 billion, malaking halaga ‘yan, pangtulong natin, ayuda para makabangon uli ang ating mga kababayan na talagang nahirapan at nagsara ‘yung mga businesses nila dito sa pandemya na ito,” Pacquiao added.

(Maybe it is better that we allocate the P8 billion to help or give aid to Filipinos so they could recover, especially those who really had a difficult time and closed their businesses due to the pandemic.)

The Commission on Elections will receive a total budget of P26.69 billion for the conduct of the national and barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections this 2022.

Pacquiao, who is running for president, said he would ask Congress to pass a measure that would defer the barangay polls in December if he wins in May.

The barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections were supposed to be held in May 2020, but it was deferred to December 2022.

Previously, the barangay election scheduled for May 2016 was suspended twice before it was finally held in May 2018.

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