Comelec asks DILG to declare day of rescheduled polls as holiday

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has asked the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG) to authorize local officials to declare as a holiday the day of the rescheduled barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) polls in the affected areas. "The Comelec resolves to request the honorable secretary of the DILG to authorize the local executives/officials where barangay and SK elections were postponed to declare holiday in such barangays," said Comelec Resolution 9081. The resolution was promulgated on election day, October 25, because the late delivery of election materials caused a delay in the conduct of polls in some villages around the country. Comelec Resolution 9078 says that if the election paraphernalia for a particular precinct fail to arrive at noon of October 25, elections will be held on the next feasible day. Section 5 of the Omnibus Election Code says that an election can only be postponed "for any serious cause such as violence, terrorism, loss or destruction of election paraphernalia or records, force majeure, and other analogous causes of such a nature that the holding of a free, orderly and honest election should become impossible in any political subdivision." The poll body, however, is only given 30 days to schedule the election in a certain area. Earlier, the Comelec postponed the polls in the coastal municipalities of Divilacan, Palanan, and Maconacon in Isabela. It also postponed the conduct of elections in some villages in Legazpi for delayed delivery of poll materials and in San Isidro and Salumague in Paniqui, Tarlac due to flooding. The poll body likewise said it is considering declaring failure of elections in in some villages in Datu Unsay and Datu Salibo in Maguindanao, and Butig, Tugaya, and Tamparan in Lanao Del Sur because of incidents of election violence. Comelec chairman Jose Melo said that they will release a list of areas where elections have been postponed by 3 p.m. - VVP, GMANews.TV