File photo shows a policeman guarding ballot boxes during the plebiscite to ratify the Bangsamoro Organic Law in Buluan, Maguindanao on January 21, 2019. An election watchdog urges the Senate to approve the Comelec Integrity Act to make the poll body’s field offices independent from local government funding. MindaNews photo by BONG S. SARMIENTO
DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 28 October) — The Upper House is urged to approve Senate Bill 2817 or the Commission on Elections (Comelec) Comelec Integrity Act, which contains a provision, among others, that will make the poll body’s field offices independent from local government funding, before the May 2025 elections.
Brizza Rosales, technical and reform consultant of election watchdog Legal Network for Truthful Elections (Lente), cited the “overlooked” Section 55 of the Omnibus Election Code.
Rosales spoke Sunday, October 27, at the “Training on Reporting the 1st BARMM Parliamentary Elections” in Davao City organized by the Media Impact Philippines and the Mindanao Institute of Journalism via Zoom Meeting.
Such section of the election code, which was stipulated back in 1985, or two years before the country’s current constitution was approved and ratified, states that the “local government concerned shall provide a suitable place for the office of the provincial election supervisor and his staff and the election registrar and his staff.”
It added that “in case of failure of the local government concerned to provide such suitable place, the provincial election supervisor or the election registrar, as the case may be, upon prior authority of the Commission and notice to the local government concerned, may lease another place for office and the rentals thereof shall be chargeable to the funds of the local government concerned.”
Rosales said the Comelec would need at least P21 billion to establish field offices across, apart from real estate lease.
Currently, the Comelec Integrity Bill, authored by Senators Joel Villanueva, Ramon “Bong” Revilla Jr., Imee Marcos, and Ronald “Bato” Dela Rosa, is still pending on the second reading.
The bill aims to amend Sections 53 and 55 of the Omnibus Election Code, to “ensure and preserve its integrity and independence by providing suitable office space for its field offices and a sufficient manpower complement.”
Section 53 seeks the appointment of new election officers when new cities or municipalities are created; and to mandate one Comelec election assistant for every 20,000 registered voters in every Comelec field office.
In the Davao region, for instance, the Comelec regional office is situated at the Mindanao Media Hub, where both government-controlled news entities such as Radyo Pilipinas Davao and People’s Television Davao are located.
“Fingers crossed, naniniwala po kami na susunod na po ito (we believe this would be approved. Kasi natapos na po ito sa (It already hurdled the)House of Representatives,” Rosales said. (Ian Carl Espinosa / MindaNews)
