Filing of COCs, campaign period for village, SK polls set

Candidates for the Oct. 30 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections can file their certificates of candidacy (COCs) from July 3 to July 7 but may only start campaigning on Oct. 19.

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has vowed to enforce the prohibition against “premature campaigning” in the upcoming village and youth polls elections despite a prevailing Supreme Court doctrine.

Thus, candidates will be prohibited from campaigning from July 8 to Oct. 18, since they will only be allowed to campaign during the 10-day official period.

George Garcia, chairperson of the Comelec, said election materials displayed before the campaign period would be removed and “cases will be filed against those who would be caught committing the election offense” of premature campaigning.

“For the barangay and SK elections, as soon as they file their COC, they will be considered as candidates,” Garcia said.

Under the Omnibus Election Code, engaging in election campaign activities outside the official campaign period is considered an election offense and is a ground for a candidate’s disqualification.

Garcia, an election lawyer, said the Comelec had agreed to set aside the Supreme Court doctrine in the 2009 Peñera vs Comelec case for the upcoming barangay and SK elections.

Under the Peñera doctrine, the Supreme Court ruled that those who have filed their COCs “shall only be considered as a candidate at the start of the campaign period.”

The ruling had been used to restrict Comelec to regulate the campaign activities of candidates only during the official campaign period.

According to Garcia, upon review the Comelec concluded that the Supreme Court ruling applied only to automated elections and not to the barangay and SK elections where voting will be done manually. INQ