October 3, 2024 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — The first day of the filing of certificates of candidacy (COC) last Oct. 1 was “so far, so good,” according to an official of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV).
In an interview yesterday over dzBB, PPCRV national coordinator Arwin Serrano said the first day of filing COC went well.
“We are praying that the eight days of filing COCs would be orderly,” he said.
“Maybe it is because the noisy candidates have not filed their COCs yet. But we are expecting the bands and a large number of supporters to accompany them… But it is OK if they are noisy, for as long as they are not rowdy,” he added.
For the 2025 midterm elections, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) set the 90-day campaign for national candidates (senators and partylists) from Feb. 11 to May 10, 2025.
Meanwhile, local bets have 45 days to campaign or from March 28 until May 10, 2025. The midterm polls are scheduled on May 12.
Unknowns, repeat filers
More prominent personalities led by administration senatorial candidates yesterday filed their COCs for the May 2025 elections.
But there were also unknown aspirants and repeat filers.
Among them was Eric Negapatan, who claimed to be a helper of the Marcos family, and pastor Magno Manalo from Batangas who promised free rice for the Filipino people if elected to public office.
Another repeat filer, Bethsaida Lopez – who claimed to be God’s chosen one – lamented that her COC for the Senate had been rejected by the Comelec twice. Lopez said she was disqualified for being poor and could not mount a national campaign.
Comelec spokesman John Rex Laudiangco clarified that a candidate cannot be disqualified based on financial incapacity to mount a nationwide campaign.
Laudiangco noted that the Supreme Court has already removed the financial aspect in declaring an aspirant a nuisance.
Meanwhile, two congressional aspirants were not allowed to file their COCs for having forms for the 2022 elections, Comelec-NCR assistant regional election director Jovencio Balanquit said yesterday.
He said the candidates have six more days to fill up and file the COC forms for the 2025 elections.
Early gun ban eyed
The Philippine National Police (PNP) is eyeing to impose the gun ban before the election period to prevent the occurrence of election-related violence.
The Comelec set the election gun ban from Jan. 12 to June 11 next year.
“The gun ban, we are studying if it could be earlier but what we are running after are loose firearms right now,” PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil said.
In response, the Comelec said it will seriously consider the PNP’s proposal. However, it stressed the imposition of a gun ban could also affect the operations of certain industries.
The gun ban, Laudiangco said, also covers controlled chemicals and explosives. For this reason, the ban could affect certain industries operating inside export processing zones. — Mayen Jaymalin, Emmanuel Tupas, Jose Rodel Clapano
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