Villanueva: All candidates must file SOCEs before June 12
By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

Negros Occidental provincial elections supervisor, Atty. Tictac Villanueva, said all candidates in the recent midterm elections must file their Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) before June 12 or risk disqualification.
According to the elections official, they have yet to receive SOCEs from those who participated on the provincial level.
Villanueva also pointed out, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) does allow for winning candidates to file past deadline but they are subject to a penalty.
“SOCEs filed beyond the deadline shall not be accepted except from those who won the elections,” she said in a statement. “However, the winning candidate shall submit [their] SOCE within six months from the date of proclamation without prejudice to payment of administrative penalty for late filing.”
Villanueva also noted, under the law, a political party is only allowed to spend P3 per voter and independent candidates P5 only.
Earlier this month, Comelec-Iloilo City assistant officer Jonathan Sayno made a similar call, saying, candidates should submit their respective SOCEs within 30 days after the election.
He noted, those who refuse to fulfill their duty face penalties including an administrative case and fines between P1,000 to P30,000 on their first offense. Fines increase on a second offense, which can range between P2,000 and P60,000.
Second offenders will also be penalized with perpetual disqualification from holding public office./DGB, WDJ