Election calendar moved anew

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) virtually gave the go-signal yesterday to extend President Estrada’s impeachment trial until February by extending the deadline for the filing of the certificates of candidacy (COCs) of those who intend to run in the May 14 polls.

Comelec Chairwoman Harriet Demetriou said the seven-member commission granted en banc the request of several congressmen to extend the deadline by another month or up to Feb. 12.

Aspiring candidates in the coming national and local polls were previously directed to submit their COCs by Jan. 14 to give the Comelec enough time to prepare for computerized elections.

But officials fear that the Jan. 14 deadline would disrupt the ongoing impeachment trial of the President since several senators, who are sitting as jurors in the trial, would need to have sufficient time to

campaign for the elections.

The impeachment prosecution team would also be disrupted, officials said, since some of them would be automatically considered resigned once the campaign period begins.

Demetriou, however, said the extension of the deadline was primarily due to the Comelec’s computerization program.

"Several congressmen, including Speaker Arnulfo Fuentebella, have requested the Comelec to extend the deadline for filing of COCs since it would be impossible for us to proceed with the computerization of the coming elections," Demetriou said.

But the extension of the filing period, Demetriou said, will exclude the four provinces of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) where computerized counting machines had been in use since 1996.

Demetriou said the 68 computerized machines utilized in the 1996 and 1998 elections will again be utilized in the provinces of Tawi-Tawi, Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur and Sulu.

Outside the ARMM, the coming elections will be undertaken in the traditional way following the suspension of the P6.5-billion Voter Registration and Identification System (VRIS).

At a press conference, Demetriou said the commission en banc unanimously decided to put on hold the implementation of VRIS until after vital questions on the financial, legal and technical aspects on the project have been resolved.

The law cannot be sacrificed for the sake of the modernization program, said Demetriou while stressing that the contract with Photokina Marketing Corp. is null and void and therefore cannot be implemented.

"I cannot be party to an illegal transaction with Photokina or any supplier for that matter," said Demetriou, denying allegations that she had already signed the draft contract with Photokina.

Demetriou had earlier ordered the junking of a contract between the poll body and Photokina due to financial problems and certain flaws in the agreement.

Asked whether she is being pressured to sign the contract with Photokina, a company allegedly linked with presidential mistress Guia Gomez, Demetriou said she will not allow herself to be pressured.

However, Demetriou said the Comelec will still push through with its modernization program but through proper and legal means.