House OKs on 2nd reading bill seeking to defer Barangay, SK polls 

Plenary Hall of the House of Representatives. INQUIRER FILE PHOTO / GRIG C. MONTEGRANDE

MANILA, Philippines — The House of Representatives on Tuesday approved on second reading a bill seeking to defer the December 2022 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.

The lower chamber approved House Bill 4673, which moves the barangay and SK elections to the first Monday of December 2023 during the plenary session.

Albay Representative Edcel Lagman, who initially opposed the bill’s approval due lack of physically present lawmakers during the session, later took back his objection after the plenary hall was “overwhelmed by warm bodies.”

Kabataan Rep. Raoul Manuel, who opposed the measure, revealed during the session that about one out of 10 SK seats would be left vacant if the elections are postponed. This accounts for around 34,000 seats out of 336,368 SK positions, according to Manuel.

Commission on Elections chairman George Erwin Garcia earlier urged Congress to pass the law postponing the barangay local elections no later than August, since he said the agency needs to start printing the ballots in September up to mid-October if the Congress decides to continue the elections on December 5.

Garcia also said the delay would mean an additional cost of P5 billion on top of the P8.4 billion regular budget.

Barangay and SK elections are supposed to be held every three years under Republic Act No. 9340, but delays and postponements have often resulted in elected officers staying in office for up to five years.

Since 2016, the village and youth polls have been postponed thrice. The elections in December 2022 were originally scheduled for May 2020.

RELATED STORY:
House panel okays bill postponing barangay, SK polls 

JPV