Comelec: Keep barangay polls non-partisan

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) on Thursday said candidates for the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) may be endorsed by incumbent officials but they should not be part of any political parties.

This is in line with the “non-partisan” concept of the BSKE, Comelec Executive Director Teofisto Elnas Jr. said in a press conference after a consultative meeting in Ilocos Norte,

For Civil service employees, Elnas said they are completely prohibited to campaign for or against any candidate.

In a text message to GMA News Online, Garcia explained that “non-partisan” means BSKE bets are not allowed to declare political parties in the filing of their certificates of candidacy.

“Ang non-partisan nature po ng BSKE ay sa filing ng COC. Walang political parties,” Garcia said.

This means BSKE candidates cannot run under a political party, but they can be endorsed by officials who are members of the said party.

Garcia also said that while local officials may be allowed to campaign for BSKE candidates, they should not use any funds from the municipal or city hall to promote the candidacy of a particular bet.

“’Wag na wag po nilang gagawin [iyan] sapagkat tatandaan niyo po na meron pong prohibition sa social services, kahit nga sa public works during the election period. Ibig sabihin mula August 28[, ‘yung simula ng filing ng candidacy ay meron na pong prohibition. Kinakailangan kung may paggastos sila may mga proyekto sila sa bawat bayan nila, sa bawat siyudad, kinakailangan humihingi sila sa amin ng exemption,” Garcia warned.

This prohibition also applies to national government agencies such as the Department of Social Welfare and Development and Department of Public Works and Highways.

“Pag walang exemption either kakasuhan namin ng kasong kriminal or kung ‘yan ay incumbent, halimbawa lalo na at tatakbo sa barangay, eh pupwede naming i-disqualify. So yun po ang ibig sabihin natin. Hindi namin mapipigilan ang pangangampanya nila o pag-endorse pero may limitasyon ang paggamit nila ng pondo at resources ng munisipyo or city hall,” Garcia added.—RSJ, GMA Integrated News