THE COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS said it is now focusing on the preparations for the May 2019 mid-term polls amid calls for its postponement.
COMELEC spokesman James Jimenez said they are preparing for the holding of the fourth automated elections. “The institution remains focused on the task at hand: preparing for the 2019 National and Local Elections, scheduled for May 2019,” he said. “I believe the (House) Speaker has not actually or formally initiated any action to postpone the 2019 polls.”
House of Representatives Speaker Pantaleon Alvarez said it would be more practical to postpone the 2019 midterm elections to pave the way for the transition to a federal form of government. Some lawmakers have proposed to postpone elections and instead hold it in 2022 to coincide with the shift to federalism and presidential polls.
The National Movement for Free Elections also opposed the postponement of the polls. “We should adhere to periodic and genuine elections,” NAMFREL Secretary General Eric Alvia said, noting that regular elections should be held in the country. (Ferdinand Patinio)
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