The Commission on Elections has begun its preparations for the barangay elections even as a bill to postpone the electoral exercise a second time is pending in Congress.
The poll body has earmarked P164 million to purchase various supplies for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections scheduled on Oct. 23.
These items include ball pens, plastic security seals, fingerprint takers, indelible ink, ballot secrecy folders, padlocks, bond paper, kraft paper, carbonless paper, printer ink and ribbons.
The contracts for the separate items has an approved budget of P164,389,542.14, according to a bid invitation.
The bid invitation was posted on the poll body’s website as President Duterte revealed his plans to postpone the barangay elections, saying he does not want those backed by drug lords to win.
This was the same reason the President gave last year in deferring the barangay and youth council elections, originally scheduled on Oct. 31, 2016, which was finalized in a law passed by Congress.
On Monday, Surigao del Norte Rep. Robert Ace Barbers filed a measure seeking to postpone the 2017 barangay elections to 2020, citing reasons similar to Mr. Duterte’s.
Earlier, the Comelec issued a calendar of activities for the barangay and SK polls to designate the election and campaign periods, as well as the filing of candidacy.
Meanwhile, Sen. Bam Aquino on Thursday said the plan of the Duterte administration to cancel the barangay elections in October and appoint the replacements was contrary to the ideals of federalism that it is espousing.
Aquino told reporters in Bacolod City that appointing village chiefs by the central government was contrary to the concept of federalism that devolved powers to the local governments, which was being pushed by the administration.
Aquino said the senators also wanted to know the source of the administration to claim that 40 percent of barangay officials were either drug coddlers or were in the drug trade.
“As policymakers, we owe it to the people to make sure that the information we base our decisions on are verified,” he said.
Aquino also said there is no law that allows the appointment of barangay officials.
“Some scholars have said it is unconstitutional and even a law may not be enough because it is in the Constitution that barangay officials should be elected,” he said.
Aquino said he believes the the decision should be left to the people of the barangays to decide since they have the capability to choose the right leaders.