PPCRV chair: 2013 Barangay polls more heated, politicized, expensive

MANILA, Philippines - For the chairperson of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV), the "smaller" barangay elections today are no longer different from the national polls that are usually marred by political violence and other issues.

"(The barangay election) has become just like the way our (national) elections go. It has become a money-matter already," PPCRV chairperson Henrietta de Villa said in a phone-patch interview on ANC's Headstart on Monday morning.

De Villa agreed that compared to past barangay elections, this year's village polls are more expensive, political and partisan.

"The campaign is really quite heated," de Villa said. "Even this, really you can see and you can feel, has been politicized very much."

She said they have received many complaints that barangay officials are "really pulling all kinds of tricks" to get their groups elected.

For one, de Villa said barangay officials and candidates go inside at the polling precincts at will, which should not be the case.

"They can only go in if they vote. But other than that, they have no right at all to stay inside," de Villa said.

But what the PPCRV chairperson really regrets is the increase of election-related violence. She said it is unexpected that even in the community level, candidates, officials and others involved in the campaign and elections are getting harmed.

"The violence has really escalated. Vote-buying, too, and sadly, even vote-selling," de Villa said. "By baranggay na talaga. Nakakalungkot."

On Monday, 54 million voters are expected to troop to polling precincts for this year's barangay elections.

According to the Commission on Elections (Comelec), there are 94,124 candidates for 42,028 barangay chairmanship positions while 715,012 people are vying for 294,196 slots for barangay kagawad.

The government has urged the public to vote, reminding them of the importance of the barangay and of choosing the right leaders.

"Ang barangay ang batayang istitusyon ng ating lipunan. Ang bawat mamamayan ay may taya sa resulta ng halalang pambarangay. Ang mabuting pamamahala o good governance ay nag-uumpisa sa pagpili ng mabubuting pinunong pambarangay at mga kagawad ng barangay," Presidential Communications Operations Office Secretary Herminio Coloma, Jr. said on state-run dzRB radio on Sunday.