THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) warned candidates for the October 30, 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) against premature campaigning.
Lawyer George Erwin Garcia, Comelec chairman, said candidates can only campaign on days set aside for the campaign period and that violating the said procedure would be deemed premature campaigning.
Based on Omnibus Election Code (OEC), candidates are given 10 days to campaign.
"Any electioneering activity prior to the permitted timetable is considered premature campaigning," Garcia said.
In addition to this, the BSKE candidate is only allowed to post posters and election materials during the campaign period. Violators will face appropriate punishment.
"Election materials displayed ahead of the campaign period will be removed and cases are to be filed against those who would be caught committing the said election offenses," Garcia said.
In the aforementioned interpretation, Comelec pointed out that the 2009 Supreme Court (SC) ruling in the Peñera vs Comelec case is only applicable for automated elections.
But because the BSKE election is manual, those who participate in early campaigning early may face a jail term of one to six years as well as being barred from holding office in the government.
The Comelec is prepared to take the case to court if someone challenges their election rules. (ANV/TPT)