BSKE postponement faces possible appeal — Garcia
Caguioa warned that repeatedly allowing Congress to extend the terms of incumbent officials without elections undermines the Supreme Court’s credibility and weakens the people’s right to vote.
The Supreme Court (SC) ruling upholding the postponement of the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) to November 2028 may still face a motion for reconsideration, Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman George Erwin Garcia said Sunday.
The Comelec chief stated this as two senior SC justices raised constitutional objections to the repeated extensions of local officials’ terms.
Garcia said the decision upholding Republic Act (RA) 12326 was not unanimous, with only nine of the 15 sitting justices voting to declare the law constitutional.
“Any Supreme Court decision, just like those of ordinary courts or even the Comelec, may be challenged through a motion for reconsideration, especially since the Supreme Court spokesperson said the ruling was not unanimous,” Garcia said in a radio interview.
He said any restraining order that could halt implementation of the law would have to be issued before the scheduled 2 November election date. Congress, not the Comelec, has the authority to set the election date, he added, while the poll body can only postpone an election before its scheduled date.
The ruling drew dissents from Associate Justice Alfredo Benjamin Caguioa and Senior Associate Justice Marvic Leonen.
Term extensions
Caguioa warned that repeatedly allowing Congress to extend the terms of incumbent officials without elections undermines the Supreme Court’s credibility and weakens the people’s right to vote.
In his dissent in Macalintal v Office of the President (G.R. E-08557), he recalled his objection to the previous term extension under RA 12232, saying the constitutional line he had warned about had been crossed again.
He also questioned the majority’s acceptance of Congress’ authority to set terms, arguing that the distinction between adjusting terms and postponing elections could become a loophole for repeated extensions.
Leonen likewise opposed the postponement, arguing that repeated legislative deferrals undermine popular sovereignty and democratic accountability. He described the latest postponement as the fifth since 2016, warning that incumbents were being allowed to remain in office without renewed electoral consent.
The majority upheld RA 12326, which increased barangay and SK officials’ terms from four to five years and moved the elections to November 2028. It ruled that the measure fixed the duration of local officials’ terms rather than merely postponing an election.
The dispute follows earlier postponements, including the 2023 elections and the subsequent enactment of RA 12232 in 2025.
Garcia earlier welcomed the ruling, saying it removed uncertainty over the next BSKE and allowed the Comelec to focus on preparations for the May 2028 national elections.