ILOILO City — Only 10 of the 18 scheduled barangay elections since 1982 have pushed through, while Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) polls have been postponed nine times — a record that an Iloilo-based rights group described as “chronic”, alarming and must not be repeated.
Iloilo-based Kahublagan Kontra Kurapsyon (KKK) urged Malacañang and Congress to reject any proposal to postpone the November 2026 barangay and SK elections (BSKE), warning that another delay would extend the “unearned holdover tenures” of incumbent officials and deprive voters of the power to demand accountability.
Sen. Francis Escudero on August 6 filed a bill seeking to extend the term of barangay and SK officials to five years and reset the elections to November 2028. Under the bill, the next regular BSKE elections will be held on the first Monday of November 2028, and every five years thereafter.
In the House of Representatives, Negros Occidental 3rd District’s Cong. Javier Miguel Benitez filed a similar bill.
In a statement released on Aug. 10, KKK said barangay elections had been postponed eight times out of 18 scheduled occasions since their introduction in 1982, and only seven SK elections have been held because of nine postponements since the youth council polls began.
“This chronic cycle of delays normalizes unearned holdover tenures, reducing regular elections from a guaranteed constitutional right of the people to a political bargaining chip with higher officials,” KKK stressed.
The Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Western Visayas recently confirmed it entered “full election mode” for the Nov. 2, 2026 BSKE, with more than 3.14 million registered regular voters and 1.1 million SK voters now officially listed as preparations intensify across the region.
“We are all in ‘election mode. Wala kami gapanumdom resetting or postponement subong. Full swing ang amon preparations,” Comelec Region 6 director Atty. Dennis Ausan told Panay News.
Ausan said voter registration has been completed, the voters’ list finalized, and polling preparations are now focused on training election personnel, determining precinct requirements and awaiting final election guidelines from the national office.
KKK said timely village elections are crucial because barangay officials exercise direct authority over government services, infrastructure projects and public funds that affect residents’ daily lives.
“Regular village elections are where community members most intimately experience public administration – whether through the distribution of social welfare benefits, local infrastructure projects, or barangay fund allocations,” KKK added.
According to Comelec Region 6, the filing of Certificates of Candidacy is set for Sept. 28 to Oct. 5. The election period runs from Oct. 3 to Nov. 9 with a nationwide gun ban.
Campaigning will be from Oct. 22 to 31, with a campaign and liquor ban on Nov. 1. Voting on Nov. 2 will be from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m.
KKK rejected the use of national or international crises as justification for another postponement, arguing that accountable local leadership becomes even more critical during difficult periods.
“The disruption of local governance during periods of crisis deeply hampers a community’s ability to recover,” group declared.
“Hence, local officials require an authentic, updated mandate from their constituents to lead effectively through rising living costs and dire employment conditions, and to tackle corruption issues directly felt by citizens at the grassroots level,” the group stressed.
The watchdog said elections provide communities with an opportunity to renew the mandates of effective officials and remove those who have failed to deliver services or properly manage public resources.
“A fresh electoral mandate breathes life into barangay governance,” stated the rights group. “It fosters responsive social services, instills fiscal discipline, and promotes local economic initiatives at a time when communities require accountable leadership the most.”
KKK warned that repeatedly extending the terms of barangay and SK officials could entrench political patronage, weaken public oversight and create conditions in which corruption could flourish.
“Regular elections are integral to the public’s anti-corruption efforts, providing citizens with the means to audit local governance and replace ineffectual or corrupt officials,” the group stated. “Denying voters this opportunity diminishes grassroots accountability and empowers corruption to thrive unchecked.”
The group also criticized public officials who had previously set the BSKE for November 2026 but were now seeking reasons to move it again. It said another postponement would disregard commitments made to voters and waste public resources already allocated for the elections.
KKK called on Malacañang and both chambers of Congress to ensure that the polls proceed as scheduled.
“Democracy cannot be repeatedly postponed for political convenience. Protecting the sanctity and regularity of barangay elections is fundamental to upholding public trust and ensuring clean, accountable governance across barangays,” it stressed.
The chronic cycle of delays normalizes unearned holdover tenures, reducing regular elections from a guaranteed constitutional right of the people to a political bargaining chip with higher officials, stated KKK./PN
