THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) is considering rescheduling the filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COC) for the 2022 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) while waiting for the final decision on proposals to postpone the elections.
Comelec chairperson George Garcia earlier said that the filing of COCs for the 2022 BSKE is scheduled from October 6 to October 13.
In a radio interview, Garcia presented the poll body’s possible actions once the proposed bill for the BSKE’s postponement is passed into law.
He mentioned that a proposed law usually takes 15 days before it is passed and published in a newspaper of national circulation.
This is why the poll body is studying the possibility of finalizing the date on COC filing while Congress has not yet decided whether to postpone the 2022 BSKE or not.
Senator Imee Marcos earlier mentioned that the postponement of the BSKE should be scrutinized in consideration of funds after Department of the Interior and Local Government Secretary Benhur Abalos received information from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that an estimated P18 billion is needed if the 2022 BSKE will be postponed.
Garcia has repeatedly said that the Comelec would need a bigger budget if the BSKE would be postponed again and added that additional funds needed for the postponement is not part of the poll body’s proposed 2023 budget.
The Comelec said it needs P10 billion if the BSKE is postponed to May 2023, or P17 billion if rescheduled to December 2023.