Comelec sets mall-based COC filing, voting for BSKE

MANILA -- The Commission on Elections (Comelec) plans to pilot test mall-based filing of certificates of candidacy (COC) from August 28 to September 2 and mall-based voting during the October 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), its spokesperson told the Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum Wednesday.

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Director John Rex Laudiangco explained this will only be implemented in areas where the local Comelec office will be inadequate to accommodate the volume of paperwork and people during the filing of candidacies.

"Ultimo po sa filing ng certificates of candidacy ay binabalak na rin po naming lumipat sa mall. Number 1 example po dito sa Manila office namin, Manila field office sa Aroceros. Napakaliit po 6 na opisina po yan district 1 to 6. Umaabot po on the average ayon po sa aming election officer ang tinatanggap nilang COC sa 28,000 plus," said Laudiangco.

Laudiangco estimates that for Manila City alone, the poll body may receive as many as 40,000 COCs.

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"Ngayon po ay kinakasa na namin ang plano na baka po ang District 1 ng Manila ay baka po pumunta diyan sa Lucky Chinatown, ang District po maghihiwahiwalay po kung saan malapit na distrito, SM Manila, SM San Lazaro, Robinsons Otis, Robinsons Manila," Laudiangco said.

If there are no malls nearby, public gymnasiums maybe tapped for the filing of candidacies.

Laudiangco said mall-based voting will benefit barangays with malls.

He added that they are still identifying the malls which would host voting.

Meanwhile, Laudiangco said while there have been incidents of violence, the Philippine National Police has yet to link any of these to the election.

Laudiangco said the poll body will use the time before the filing of COC's to prepare the security of the elections.

The official also warned prospective candidates that they can be held liable for premature campaigning if they campaign as soon as they filed their candidacies.

Laudiangco explained that the Omnibus Election Code, and not the Automated Election law, will apply to the upcoming election because it is a manual election. Laudiangco said the poll body has established that it is only the AES law which only considers candidates as such during the campaign period.

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