POLICE authorities have arrested 1,808 individuals for gun ban violation since the start of the election period on January 12.
Data from the National Election Monitoring Action Center as of last Wednesday also showed that 1,854 assorted firearms have been seized during the election period.
The arrested violators included 12 policemen, 10 soldiers, eight government officials, and nine foreign nationals.
The PNP said 588 of the 1,808 violators were arrested in the National Capital Region (NCR), which include seven foreign nationals, a soldier and a policeman.
As to the 1,854 seized firearms, the PNP said these included 760 revolvers, 518 pistols and 15 rifles.
It said NCR also topped all regions in terms of seized firearms with 613.
The PNP said the number of election-related incidents (ERIs) across the country remained at 11 — nine violent and two non-violent.
There are also one violent and three non-violent suspected ERIs which are being validated to determine if they are related to the elections.
Seventeen incidents, earlier classified as suspected ERIs have been found to be not related to the elections. Of these, two were violent and 15 were non-violent.
Meanwhile, ahead of the start of the campaign period for local candidates on March 28, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) yesterday again called on lawmakers to amend the law and bring back the ban on premature campaigning.
In an interview, Comelec chairman George Garcia said the perennial acts of premature campaigning makes it imperative to reimpose the prohibition of such activities.
“We can see and feel the growing calls for amendments in the law regarding premature campaigning. We believe that those that will file their certificates of candidacy (COCs) must be considered as candidates immediately and are, thus, prohibited from doing premature campaigning,” said Garcia.
“Hopefully, there is another government agency that will take care of this matter since, as of this time, there is no ban on premature campaigning,” he added.
As an alternative, the poll chief said the public may file charges against candidates engaged in such, which he said will allow the poll body to issue a ruling on the matter and create a “justiciable controversy” that can be brought before the Supreme Court (SC).
“There has to be a proper case. If there is no proper case, the SC won’t issue a legal opinion. For all we know, the SC may give a second look in the Peñera versus Comelec jurisprudence,” Garcia said.
The Poll Automation Law states that “any person who files his certificate of candidacy shall only be considered as a candidate at the start of the campaign period,” and that “unlawful acts applicable to a candidate shall be in effect only upon the start of the campaign period”.
This provision was affirmed by the 2009 SC case of Peñera vs. Comelec, which paved the way for the removal of premature campaigning as an election offense.
The Comelec renewed its call after a video became viral showing an alleged mayor in the Visayas giving away cash in a public gathering.
Garcia said they have already seen the video and have identified the individual involved but refused to name them.
“We condemn such acts of one showing off their wealth while also insulting the poor people attending such rallies,” he said.
He, however, reiterated that the Comelec does not have the power to hold such individuals, including political aspirants, accountable since it is not yet the campaign period for local bets.
“We cannot file any case against him yet. Our power under the election laws will only take effect on March 28, especially on the issue of vote buying,” said Garcia.
The Comelec yesterday opened the enrolment period for the Online Voting and Counting System (OVCS).
Garcia reminded registered overseas voters to start enrolling for the OVCS as soon as possible.
“From today until May 7, let us take the time to get enrolled. Even if you are a registered overseas voter, if you aren’t enrolled, you cannot cast your vote,” he said, stressing that enrollment is necessary for the Comelec to ascertain the identity of the voters.
The Comelec said enrolment may be done using the voter’s own internet-capable device during the pre-voting enrolment period.
Another way is through the voting kiosks set-up at Philippine posts during the overseas voting period.
To note, 77 posts abroad will be using the OVCS, while the remaining 16 Philippine Embassies (PE) and Philippine Consulates General (PCG) will use the automated counting machines (ACMs).
The overseas voting period, with 1,241,690 registered voters, is set to run from April 13 to May 12. – With Gerard Naval
