THE Commission on Elections will resume the registration of voters in November after the poll body passes a resolution for the purpose after Congress passed a law postponing the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections to Oct. 23, 2017.
Comelec chairman Andres Bautista said the Comelec expects an additional three to five million voters to register for next year’s barangay elections and two million voters for SK polls.
Comelec spokesperson James Jimenez said the funds intended for the 2016 barangay and SK polls are intact and will be used in 2017 while 411,000 ballots that have already been printed will still be used in the next election.
The Commission will conduct another round of registration period as required by RA 8189 or the Voters’ Registration Act of 1996, as both Houses of Congress approved the postponement of the 2016 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections to Oct. 23, 2017.
“We hope that we will be able to release an official Resolution on the resumption of registration in a week or two,” Jimenez added.
Meanwhile, Jimenez said the poll body has learned much at an international symposium on electoral debates at the University of Nevada in Las Vegas.
Jimenez said conversations among delegates are providing useful insights on how to design, prepare for, and actually mount debates even before the start of the symposium last Oct. 18.
Jimenez represented the Philippines at the symposium, jointly organized by the Commission on Presidential Debates and National Democratic Institute, which brings together around 50 delegates to share their unique stories about organizing debates in their home countries.
Delegates from Jamaica, for instance, shared experience that are not unlike the organizing issues the Comelec handled in putting the PiliPinas Debates 2016 together, he said.
Polls in Jamaica don’t have fixed dates, and they tell of successfully staging major debates despite having only three weeks lead time.
“If we can learn from the Jamaican experience in terms of how they maintain a constant state of readiness, our debate preparations can benefit from increased efficiency and, ultimately, efficacy,” Jimenez said.
Holding debates at the local level, which Jamaica is already doing, is also one of the Commission’s goals and is desired by many Filipinos, Jimenez added.
Flaws notwithstanding, what matters most in the execution of debates is recognizing that it is a continuous process of learning and refining. He emphasized: “There will always be room for improvement.”
Jimenez is set to give a presentation on the politics and background of election debates in the Philippines, which will be part of the discussion on “Debate Sponsor Models: Perspectives of Election Authorities and Media Regulatory Groups” on the second day of the symposium.