BY GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Provincial Comelec supervisor Atty. Ian Lee Ananoria reported yesterday that a total of 67,843 new voters in Negros Occidental have registered so far registered, as of July 19, for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections scheduled on December 5 this year.
The deadline for registration of new voters has been set by the Commission on Election on July 23, after it on July 4.
Ananoria said various Comelec offices in the province registered 100 to 200 new voters a day as the deadline nears, which for him is a normal occurrence.
He appealed to registrants to be patient, noting long lines outside Comelec offices.
Aside from the applications from new voters, the Comelec is also receiving applications for transfer or reactivation of registration.
Ananoria also called on those who are seeking transfer of voting areas to be honest in their statement declarations, as they may be charged for an election offense which is punishable by one to six years of imprisonment, and not subject to probation.
SK voters should be at least 15 years old but not more than 30 years old on the day of the elections, while regular voters should be at least 18 years old.
Ananoria also said that Comelec is now accepting barangay issued identification cards as a proof of identity of a registrant under the new issued guidelines.
As to the call for postponement of synchronized barangay and SK elections, he said their direction is toward the holding of election on December 5, unless a law is passed to postpone it.
Negros Occidental 3rd District Rep. Jose Francisco Benitez supports the postponement of SK and barangay elections.
Let us see for how long it will be postponed, since there are intricacies to that,” Benitez said.
Davao Oriental Rep. Cheeno Miguel Almario filed HB 1367 that seeks to postpone the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) to October 9 next year.
A similar bill was also filed by Senator Chiz Escudero in the Senate suspending the barangay elections until May 2024, especially given the current situation where the country is still fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.*
