Comelec's Garcia: Regular postponement of election causes 'uncertainty in governance'

Regular postponement of elections could cause uncertainty in governance, Commission on Elections chairperson George Garcia said Wednesday amid the filing of bills seeking to postpone the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE).

"Yung regular na postponement kasi (ng election), nagkakaroon ng uncertainty sa governance," Garcia said during the Kapihan sa Manila Hotel forum.

(Regular postponement of election causes uncertainty in governance.)

He explained that both the seating government official and the public are in limbo on whether or not a continuation or change of leadership will happen.

"Yan lang sa akin, hindi bilang administrator ng eleksyon. Sayang din ang paghahanda ng election. Nakakapagod din dahil ang dami pinaghahanda at mauunsiyami lang din," Garcia said.

(That's my personal take, not as an administrative of elections. Our efforst would go to waste. It’s also exhausting because we prepare so much, only for it to end up being put to waste.)

However, Garcia maintained that the poll body will leave the decision to Congress and abide by it.

On Tuesday, Garcia said the poll body is hoping for clarity by September on whether the BSKE will push through as scheduled.

He explained that an early decision would allow the poll body to adjust its preparations, particularly as it also needs to gear up for the 2028 National and Local Elections (NLE).

Comelec has already spent P8 billion of its P19-billion budget for the BSKE.

Garcia said some election supplies, including indelible ink, may go unused if the BSKE is postponed.

The BSKE is scheduled on November 2, 2026.

Last week, Senator Francis "Chiz" Escudero filed a bill seeking to extend the terms of barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan officials to five years and reset the elections to November 2028.

Several bills have also been filed in the House of Representatives seeking to postpone the barangay and SK elections. — RSJ, GMA News