Commission on Elections (COMELEC) Chairman George Erwin Garcia said on Wednesday that the poll body will push through with its preparations for this year’s Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) despite the possible postponement.

“Sa part ng COMELEC, kami po ay hindi pa rin titigil sa aming paghahanda (On the part of the COMELEC, we will not stop in our preparations),” said Garcia during a radio interview.

“Tuloy-tuloy pa rin po kami sapagkat ang batas sa kasalukuyan ay may eleksyon tayo sa Nov. 2 (We will still continue because, under the law, the BSKE will proceed this Nov. 2),” he added.

The COMELEC chief made the assurance despite the pending bills in Congress that propose to extend the terms of barangay officials from four years to five years.

Because of these bills, Garcia said the BSKE could be postponed this year and reset for 2028.

With this, Garcia appealed to Congress to make a decision on whether to pass the bills by September, since the filing of certificates of candidacy (COCs) for the BSKE is slated for 28 September to 5 October.

The chairman revealed that the COMELEC received a budget of P19.56 billion for the holding of the BSKE and has already spent P8 billion, including for the printing of ballots, the purchase of 70,000 ballot boxes, as well as ballpens, indelible ink and thumbprint takers, among others.

Despite this, he assured that the equipment and election paraphernalia are still usable should the BSKE be reset to a later date.

Under the bills, Garcia said the BSKE could be held in the second week of November 2028, away from the crowded cemeteries on All Saints’ Day on Nov. 1 and All Souls’ Day on 2 November.

During the congressional hearings on the bills, Garcia also learned that each barangay was being asked to submit five-year development plans to the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), the National Youth Commission (NYC) and the Liga ng mga Barangay sa Pilipinas.

If this is so, Garcia asked, “So paano po magpapatupad ng five-year development plan kung apat na taon ang nakaupong barangay at SK (So how will the sitting barangay and SK officials implement this five-year development plan)?”

“Dapat limang taon din ang pagpapatupad (So the implementation should be five years as well),” stressed the chairman.