Senate probe sought on reported voter registration fraud for barangay, SK polls
MANILA, Philippines — Senator Imee Marcos is seeking an inquiry into the alleged massive fraudulent registration of voters for the 2023 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.
Marcos, who heads the Senate electoral reforms and people’s participation panel, on Tuesday said that she had filed Senate Resolution 592, directing the appropriate panel to look into reports of increases in the volume of registered voters in some barangays, “far outpacing the projected population growth forecasted by government agencies.”
“There is an urgent need to revisit existing election laws including, but not limited to, the Voter’s Registration Act of 1996 and the relevant portions of the Omnibus Election Code, so that necessary changes may be made in order to decisively address these long-standing issues,” Marcos said.
The senator cited the “massive and unexplained” sharp rise in the number of registered voters and registrants from Barangay Carmona, Makati City despite no recorded mass migration of new residents in the area nor an increase in the territory of the barangay.
She said some 497 registrants withdrew their respective applications after they were challenged by Barangay Carmona chairman Joselito Salvador.
Their identification cards, Marcos noted, purportedly showed that they reside in Bulacan, Zambales, Laguna, and Occidental Mindoro
She also cited allegations that the spate of fraudulent voter registrations is “bankrolled by big-time businessmen, contractors, and suppliers in anticipation of the increase in the internal revenue allotment of barangays.”
Marcos cited the Supreme Court’s Mandanas ruling, which boosts the national internal revenue allotment share of local government units.
“Concerns have been voiced out that the situation in Barangay Carmona may be happening in many other barangays all over the country,” she lamented.
The election period for the 2023 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections will kickstart with the filing of certificates of candidacy between Aug. 28 to Sept. 2.
Election day is on October 3, 2023 from 7:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.
