AN OFFICIAL of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Negros Occidental emphasized to the Philippine Army and the Philippine National Police (PNP) the plain view doctrine in the conduct of checkpoints at the start of the election period on April 14, which is also the start of the gun ban.
Comelec provincial supervisor Jessie Suarez said the plain view doctrine means that during checkpoints, the officers cannot simply open the compartments and bags except those that can be seen by the naked eye.
Suarez made the emphasis about the conduct of the checkpoints and other Comelec resolutions related to the May 14 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections in Thursday's (April 12) Provincial Peace Coordinating Center meeting at the Social Hall of the Provincial Capitol.
Meanwhile, Suarez also said drug test for candidates in the coming barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections is not required.
“It was already declared as unconstitutional by the Supreme Court. In the previous election, it was one of the requirements but it was already declared unconstitutional by the Supreme Court because it is not embodied in our Constitution,” he said.
Suarez said they would determine the election areas of concern after the filing of Certificate of Candidacy (COC).
Senior Superintendent Rodolfo Castil, provincial police director, said the candidates who filed their COC will be profiled and will be the basis of the PNP in identifying the election areas of concern.
“The PNP will make the recommendation and will be approved by the Comelec,” he said.
While they can make the previously identified areas of concern as a reference, they have to profile first the candidates, Castil said.
A locality could be categorized as a hotspot if there is intense political rivalry among candidates and the existence of violence.
The Isabela shooting, which left three people dead and two others injured, could not yet be considered election-related because it is non-political.
Suarez also clarified that Comelec's function in the election is only ministerial, meaning they will have to accept the COCs based on what is prescribed by the law and that the concerned candidate would only be the one answerable if in case a complaint or disqualification petition is filed against him or her because of his or her perceived political affiliation.
The candidates will have to submit their duly notarized COC form with documentary stamps and passport size picture, Suarez said.