MANILA, Philippines — Presidential candidates Francisco “Isko Moreno” Domagoso and Manny Pacquiao said they are in favor of postponing the December barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, saying the budget for the polls should be used to fund the government’s pandemic response and aid struggling sectors.
The barangay is the smallest political unit of government and is how most people access government services. Postponed elections would mean barangay officials — elected to three-year terms — will be staying on in a holdover capacity.
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Domagoso said the P8-billion budget for barangay polls can be used to provide assistance to farmers and sectors affected by rising oil prices.
"I would rather spend it na pakinabangan muna ng tao at maitawid sila (for people’s use and help them get past this tough time)," Domagoso said during his visit to Cabiao, Nueva Ecija Thursday.
"Kaya ‘yung barangay elections, hopefully ma-cancel muna, extend muna natin [ang term ng incumbent official] for about a year, or a year and a half," he added.
(Hopefully, the barangay elections will be cancelled for now. Let’s extend the terms of incumbent officials for about a year, or a year and a half.)
The polls will come seven months after the May 9 national and local elections.
For boxing icon-turned-presidential bet Pacquiao, the budget for the barangay elections should be used to fund the government’s pandemic response and economic recovery efforts.
"Hindi pa tayo nakaka-recover. Sayang naman iyong more or less P8 billion na gagastusin natin sa barangay elections," he said in Tarlac City Wednesday.
(We have yet to recover. The more or less P8 billion budget for the barangay elections will be a waste.)
If elected president, Pacquiao said he will ask lawmakers to pass a measure that will postpone the barangay and SK polls.
In November 2021, Rep. Joel Mayo Almario (Davao Oriental) filed a bill seeking to postpone the December 2022 barangay elections to May 2024. He cited the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic as the reason for filing the bill.