By Dominique Gabriel G. Bañaga

The Commission on Elections (Comelec) has deputized barangay officials to help in the monitoring and reporting of the conduct of all election activities to ensure that it complies with the minimum health standards and protocols.

Atty. Robert Salazar, Comelec provincial election supervisor in Negros Occidental, said today, February 8, will be the beginning of the campaign period for national candidates.

Salazar said Comelec Resolution 10732 lays down the rules for in-person campaigns, motorcades, and rallies.

Under the resolution, the poll body will regulate the movement of candidates.

“National candidates will need to get a permit to hold election campaign activities from the Regional Comelec Campaign Committee (RCCC) where he or she will kick-off their campaigns,” Salazar said.

Except for areas where there is a high COVID-19 case or security threat, usually the RCCC will approve it, he also said.

Salazar said he is set to meet with members of the Provincial Comelec Campaign Committee (PCCC) today to discuss their action plan.

The PCCC is composed of the highest ranking health officials in the province, including representatives of the Department of Health (DOH), Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), Philippine National Police (PNP), and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).

The DILG is included because they have supervision over local officials, especially those in the barangays.

Salazar said that barangay officials are liable with the DILG if their reports are tainted with bias.

The Comelec can also conduct random inspection of the election activities to ensure that candidates comply with the rules, especially the health protocols, he said.

Salazar added that the Comelec has adopted the Alert Level system followed by the National Inter-Agency Task Force depending on the COVID-19 cases in an area./DGB, WDJ