THE Commission on Elections-Davao Region (Comelec-Davao) and an environmental group are reminding all candidates, winners or losers, to start removing their campaign paraphernalia.
Comelec-Davao assistant regional director Lawyer Gay Enumerables said in a press conference that in Davao City, candidates must adhere to the Executive Order 15 issued by outgoing Davao City Mayor and presumptive vice president Sara Duterte-Carpio mandating the immediate retrieval of campaign paraphernalia right after the election day, May 10.
"We encouraged 'yung mga kandidato na tanggalon na nila ilang (to remove their) campaign paraphernalia," Enumerables said on Wednesday, May 11.
Interfacing Development Interventions for Sustainability (Idis) Executive Director Mark Peñalver emphasized that local candidates must follow the EO 15 series of 2022 which was highlighted as one of the provisions that they need to recycle, reuse, and repurpose their election paraphernalia and not just throw those materials directly to the landfill.
“Win or lose, limpyohon or hiposon nila ang ilahang campaign paraphernalias na gipangdikit sa atong mga kahoy, sa atong mga walls, or sa atong mga kadalanan (they need to clean or remove their campaign paraphernalias that they posted on the trees, walls, and along the roads),” Peñalver said.
He said that a number of local candidates are already removing their campaign paraphernalia on the streets.
However, based on the monitoring of SunStar Davao, there are still several campaign materials seen in some parts of the city.
The Davao-based environmental group also proposed that local candidates must properly dispose of their campaign materials by sending them to recycling centers.
They also have partners who help with waste management such as the Lunhaw Awardee in Davao City, Toril Kalambuan, and the Women association which is one of the groups that upcycle waste resources.
“Ang mga tarpaulins pwede buhatan og (Tarpaulins can be converted into) bag or face masks. Ang mga plastic posters pwede mahimong pitaka or slippers (Plastic posters can be made into wallets or slippers. That group)," Peñalver said. (RGL with Kayly-Jy Nicolas, DNSC Intern)