THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) exempted the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) from the public spending ban in relation to the May 9 national and local elections.
According to Comelec Commissioner George Garcia, the Comelec en banc approved the DSWD’s petition for exception from the 45-day public spending ban that will start on March 25 up to May 8, 2022.
“The Petition for Exception of DSWD during the 45 (days) period of campaign was likewise approved/granted by the En Banc,” Garcia said.
“We denied/ granted fully and/ or partially certain petitions of other agencies and LGUs (local government units) nationwide,”he added.
The DSWD submitted earlier a request for exemption from the election spending ban as mandated under Comelec Resolution No. 10747.
Among those the DSWD asked to be exempted from the election spending ban are its infrastructure-related projects and procurements.
Meanwhile, the poll body also approved the petition filed by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) and other government agencies to exempt their programs and projects during the election campaign period..
Among those included in the OVP’s programs are those related to COVID-19 initiatives.