Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes Jr. INQUIRER.net FILE PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — The special barangay (village) elections in earthquake-hit Bohol and war-torn and flood-ravaged Zamboanga City will be held on November 25, according to the Commission on Elections (Comelec).
Comelec Chairman Sixto Brillantes said the commissioners agreed during the poll body’s en banc session that the special elections in the two provinces be held on November 25, five days before the term of the incumbent officials expire on November 30 to prevent them from keeping their posts in a holdover capacity.
In an interview, Brillantes said the poll body would issue a resolution containing the details of the special elections.
He said part of the resolution would have something to do with the issue of the distribution of relief goods by incumbent barangay officials in Bohol.
“The rehabilitation (of affected areas) and distribution of relief goods are ongoing. There is a legal issue whether the candidates for barangay polls may or may not distribute relief goods,” the poll chief said.
The Comelec earlier postponed the barangay polls in Bohol province due to the 7.2 magnitude earthquake that struck Central Visayas last week.
“There were continuous aftershocks and many schools which will be used as polling centers have not been certified safe to use,” Brillantes said.
Meanwhile, the barangay elections were postponed in Zamboanga City due to the damage caused by the recent armed conflict between government troops and members of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF).
The rest of the country will have the barangay elections on October 28 as scheduled.
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