WITH just under five months before the December 2022 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) polls, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday urged Congress to decide as soon as possible whether it will be postponed or not.
In a virtual forum hosted by Stratbase ADR Institute, acting Elections spokesman John Rex Laudiangco said they are hoping that the uncertainty over the fate of the forthcoming elections will not last long so the poll body can continue with its preparations.
For one, he said the Comelec needs to know if it should continue procuring election paraphernalia to be used for the December 5, 2022 polls.
“This is so that we can postpone any other procurements that we have not yet concluded,” said Laudiangco.
As to those they have already started procuring, he assured that they can still be repurposed for the next barangay and youth polls in the event that it is rescheduled.
“The goods and services being procured can be readily used in a date to be set by an RA postponing the elections… Thus, there are no wastage in our ongoing preparations for the BSKE,” said Laudiangco.
Aside from conducting procurement activities, the poll official said they will just continue with the other aspects of their preparations until a law is passed postponing the electoral exercise.
“Until such time that a new law is passed resetting or rescheduling the elections, the Comelec shall continue to comply with the dictates of RA 11462 and continue with our preparations,” said Laudiangco.
Earlier, Leyte Rep. Martin Romualdez, who is expected to assume as Speaker of the House in the 19th Congress, said they are looking at proposals to postpone the barangay and SK elections set in December.
Meanwhile, acting Elections chairperson Socorro Inting said the poll body will push forward with its plans to evaluate the viability of using the vote counting machines (VCMs) in the 2025 national and local polls.
Inting said she believes it is already time to have an extensive discussion on the proposal to have the old VCMs replaced after having been used for three national and local elections already.
“I think everyone will agree to a meticulous discussion and review of the propriety of using these VCMS in future elections,” said Inting.
In particular, she said there is a need to extensively assess the more than 97,000 units used in the 2016, 2019, and 2022 elections.
It must be noted that the Comelec leased an additional 10,000 VCM units to supplement the existing units during the last May 9 polls.
“Of the 107,345 VCMSs used in the 2022 elections, the 97,345 units were already used in the past elections,” Inting said.
Back in May, Comelec Commissioner Marlon Casquejo expressed belief that the May 2022 polls should already be the “last dance” for the voting machines first used in the 2016 elections.
