PHILIPPINE STAR/BOY SANTOS

THE COMMISSION on Elections (Comelec) has set the campaign period for the village and youth council elections to Oct. 19 to 28 while the gun ban will be in effect from Aug. 28 to Nov. 29.  

In a resolution on Monday, Comelec said the revised calendar of activities for the elections was based on the “existing political climate” in the country.  

Last week, the election body reset the filing of certificates of candidacy to Aug. 28 to Sept. 2 from July 3 to 7 following a request from Senator Francis N. Tolentino.  

Comelec agreed with the lawmaker’s concerns saying the deferred filing would help prevent election-related violence and early “politicking.”  

President Ferdinand R. Marcos, Jr. signed a law in October last year setting the village elections on the last Monday of October 2023 and every three years thereafter.  

TRANSMISSION LOGS
Meanwhile, Comelec has uploaded the raw transmission files of the May 9, 2022 national and local elections on its website to demonstrate transparency during the tally of votes.  

In a separate statement, it said the public disclosure of the files was made in response to several requests from interest groups.  

A retired military officer had requested the raw transmission logs, citing doubts on the speed of the electronic dispatch during the first hour after the voting period closed.  

Comelec Chairperson George Erwin M. Garcia said last week that releasing the transmission files would erase doubts of fraud during the elections. John Victor D. Ordoñez