ALL poll workers in Central Visayas who served during the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) last Oct. 30, 2023, have received their honoraria.
“100 percent na (already),” Ivan Jason delos Santos, administration officer of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) 7, said on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023.
On Thursday, Nov. 9, only 94.68 percent of poll workers in Cebu were able to receive their honoraria. However, the remainder, most of whom lived in far-flung towns, were paid by the end of Friday.
In the region, 46,821 electoral boards (EBs) served in 15,607 clustered precincts in the last BSKE.
In Cebu, 28,329 EBs served in 9,443 clustered precincts across the province, while 9,207 EBs served in 3,069 clustered precincts in Bohol Province. In Negros Oriental, 8,490 EBs rendered service in 2,830 clustered precincts, while 795 public school teachers in Siquijor served 265 clustered precincts.
Comelec 7 Director Lionel Marco Castillano, in an interview with SunStar Cebu on Oct. 31, said they were committed to paying all poll workers by Nov 3, as this was the directive they received from their central office in Manila.
Under the Election Service Reform Act, Comelec has until Nov. 14 to pay the poll workers, as the law mandates that it pay the teachers within 15 days after the election.
However, some banks did not have enough cash on hand, while some election officers could not withdraw the funds to be distributed to the EBs since the banks were closed for All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days on Nov. 1 and 2, respectively. That’s why a second deadline was set on Wednesday, Nov. 8, delos Santos said in a separate interview.
The honoraria and allowances were directly downloaded to the election officers’ accounts, with these officers tasked to disburse these funds to the EBs.
Last March, the Comelec disclosed an augmented honorarium for EB poll workers in connection with the BSKE.
They were entitled to a minimum of P8,000 to P10,000, up from the previous range of P4,000 to P6,000.
EB chairpersons received P10,000, up from P6,000, while EB members received P9,000, up from P5,000. The honoraria of support personnel also went up to P8,000 from P4,000.
