BY DOMINIQUE GABRIEL G. BAÑAGA
BACOLOD City – Negros Occidental’s 4th District congresswoman Juliet Marie Ferrer revealed that the bill she filed in the House of Representatives calling for the postponement of the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections set for December of this year will be approved.
According to Ferrer, the postponement will be approved by lawmakers before the scheduled polls.
Several other members of the House of Representatives filed their own bills related to the poll postponement and those will be consolidated and discussed before the House Committee on Suffrage and Electoral Reforms, added Ferrer.
While there are some opposition to the election postponement, Ferrer said majority of lawmakers support moving the polls to until at least 2023.
Ferrer earlier pointed out that the country had just concluded the synchronized national and local elections on May 9, and the government will have to prepare again for the barangay and SK elections in December.
Instead of spending on another electoral exercise, Ferrer said the government can direct its resources to coronavirus pandemic-related programs and help rebuild the economy.
With the proposed postponement, Ferrer said there will be continuity in the implementation of government programs.
The postponement will also give the Commission on Elections time to make the necessary preparations should the polls be held in 2023 instead./PN