The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) is studying the possibility of making the filing schedule for certificates of candidacy (COC) for the upcoming 2028 elections more advanced.
Comelec Chairperson George Erwin Garcia said that instead of the filing period to be held in October 2027, it is possible to move it to July of the same year.
Garcia explained that the COC filing in July will give enough time to resolve possible cases.
If the filing period remains between October 1 and 8, all cases will need to be resolved before the end of November.
But if it is moved to July, they will be able to finalize decisions at the Commission en Banc level in September, which will give until December for appeal to the SC.
Garcia also pointed out that the seven members of the Comelec panel have the power to change the schedule of elections activities.
The COMELEC thought of setting the filing period earlier after the recent decisions of SC on the disqualification of some candidates resulted to the reprinting of the six million ballots.
An estimated P150M worth of unusable ballots were ordered destroyed as a consequence of SC’s decision ordering the COMELEC to reinstate the names of previously disqualified candidates.
Still, Garcia stressed that changing the COC filing period will also have an impact on other aspects of the election.
In recent elections, COC filing for national and local positions have been conducted every October of the year before the elections.
Abner is an award-winning journalist. He received the prestigious 2015 Titus Brandsma Award for Community Communication in the Philippines and participated in the 2016 International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) of the United States of America, sponsored by the US Embassy in the Philippines. Founder of WATCH NORTH COTABATO, a media-citizens’ transparency group. He worked as a correspondent for the Philippine Daily Inquirer and CNN Philippines. His experience in broadcasting includes anchoring for Brigada News FM in Kidapawan and General Santos City and Brigada News TV. He anchors Tira Brigada via 105.1 Brigada News FM Manila, Mondays-Saturdays.