59 BSKE winning bets’ proclamation deferred

The Commission on Elections yesterday suspended the proclamation of 59 winning candidates in the recently concluded Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections, or BSKE.

Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco said the 59 were among the 256 respondents in disqualification cases filed before the poll body for varying reasons, including alleged premature campaigning.

"Of the 256, as of the latest data, 59 won, but their proclamations have been suspended per (Comelec) order," Laudiangco told reporters three days after the BSKE was held in the 42,0001 barangays across the country.

On Tuesday, the Comelec said at least 19 people were killed on election day itself, most of them in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao. Eight other people were killed in poll-related violence during the campaign period.

Laudiangco said the Comelec intends to resolve all disqualification cases by December.

"The Comelec intends to resolve all these cases within November, but given the influx of further cases, we might be able to finish and resolve these cases, as committed to by chairman George Garcia, by December," Laudiangco said.

Earlier, the Comelec approved a resolution suspending the proclamation of winning candidates with unresolved or pending cases before the poll body.

Among the nearly 300 petitions filed against BSKE candidates were 19 for premature campaigning and 55 for illegal campaigning.

Teachers probed

Meanwhile, the Comelec said it would investigate reports that some teachers had refused to turn over election paraphernalia after they withdrew from their election duties at the last minute.

"Those who withdrew prior to the election, we respect their decision as it is their absolute right. Election day duty is not mandatory for teachers," Garcia said. "But what about those very, very few who, on the day of the elections, when the precincts had already opened, suddenly withdrew without any notice whatsoever?"

Garcia said the teachers' alleged refusal to turn over the election materials would be probed to avert a repeat in future elections. While the withdrawal on election day itself was "unacceptable," the Comelec will give them the benefit of the doubt.

Garcia said the possible filing of cases against the teachers, numbering 2,530 in all, would be secondary to the main purpose of the Comelec investigation.

Preventing politicians from threatening teachers who will serve in upcoming elections is one of the goals of the investigation, Garcia said.

At the same time, the Comelec said it could only pay overtime to teachers who worked up to 24 hours as election officers due to Commission on Audit rules and a lack of funds for overtime pay.

"In as much as we would like to pay them, however, there is this joint CoA-DBM (Department of Budget and Management) circular that provides that only employees of an agency [are] entitled to claim overtime [pay]. The teachers who served as electoral board members are not employees of the Comelec," Garcia said.

"Moreover, the budget provided to us did not provide for such an item," he added, saying the Comelec turned down OT pay requests from teachers in 2022 for the same reasons.