Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia. INQUIRER.net / NOY MORCOSO
Winning barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) candidates in the Oct. 30 elections may “immediately” assume office after proclamation, according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec).
Replying to a query from the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the Comelec law department said the Supreme Court has ruled that the term of office of incoming barangay and SK officials actually began Jan. 1 this year.
Comelec said, based on the Supreme Court decision on June 27, 2023, against further postponement of the village and youth polls, the term of office of incumbent officials already ended on Dec. 31 last year under Republic Act No. 11462.
The Supreme Court declared unconstitutional RA 11935 that repealed RA 11462 and postponed the barangay and SK elections from Dec. 5, 2022, to Oct. 30, 2023.
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Nevertheless, the high court allowed the Oct. 30 election date to proceed, but set rules against further postponement.
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“The Commission upholds the pronouncements of the Supreme Court … Accordingly, the term of office of the sitting and incumbent barangay and SK officials have ended on Dec. 31, 2022, pursuant to RA 11462,” Comelec law department Director Maria Norina Tangaro-Casingal wrote DILG Undersecretary Juan Victor Llamas dated Oct. 25.
“At present, the sitting and incumbent [barangay and] SK officials continue to hold office under a hold-over capacity … The winning candidate and/or newly elected official, may immediately and effectively assume office,” Casingal added.
The Comelec law department chief, however, reminded the DILG that elected candidates have to file their statement of contributions and expenditures during the campaign within 30 days after the election, otherwise they cannot stay in office.
“As soon as they are elected on Oct. 30 and proclaimed, the next day they should assume office right away because their term of office started on Jan. 1, 2023,” Comelec chair George Garcia told reporters on Wednesday, after the Supreme Court rejected the government’s appeal on its ruling against further postponement of the barangay and SK elections.