Comelec 80% geared up for December 2022 barangay, SK polls

Comelec headquarters

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is 80% ready for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections in December, even as some legislators call for another postponement, the poll body’s chairman Erwin Garcia said Thursday.

Garcia said the Comelec would release the election guidelines in the next few days. The printing of ballots is set to start by mid-September.

“Kami ngayon ay almost mga 80% na ‘yung aming preparasyon para sa barangay and SK elections. All-out na tayo sa preparasyon as if na hindi namin iniisip ‘yung mga posibilidad na maaaring ma-postpone ang ating barangay at SK elections,” he said in a public briefing.

(Currently, we are 80% ready for the barangay and SK elections. Therefore, we are all-out in our preparations, albeit the possible postponement of the polls.)

The House committee on suffrage and electoral reforms approved the proposal to postpone the upcoming barangay and SK polls and to move it from Dec. 5, 2022 to Dec. 4, 2023.

Meanwhile, Garcia has promised that no time or resources will be lost if Congress agrees to delay the elections until next year.

He noted that around P18 billion would be needed to hold the polls in December next year.

He added that the Comelec currently has P8.5 billion set aside for the barangay and SK elections.

/MUF/abc