Comelec to ‘recalibrate’ rules on campaign rally permits: exec

MANILA – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is expected to come up next week with recalibrated guidelines, particularly on the issuance of rally permits during the campaign period, an official said on Thursday.

Commissioner George Erwin Garcia said he has proposed to rectify the guidelines of the Comelec Campaign Committee (CCC) as there are issues that he found to be a burden to the candidates.

“Based on my experience, asking for a CCC permit is really a big issue. There is already the city or municipal permit. But I was able to see the goodness of the idea of CCC. They crafted at a time when the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) (cases) were very high,” he said in a phone interview.

Garcia added that what he proposed is to relax the requirements depending on an area’s alert level classification.

“But at the moment, we are at level 1 and improving. I said, let’s not abolish but let us recalibrate. How, when at levels 1, 2, 3 there is a specific number of people who can join. Why not at level 1, there is no CCC permit, but there is a city permit because it is in the law. But at level 2 or 3, the CCC permit is required,” he said.

He added that while other officials agreed to his proposal, it would be best to wait for the final amendments to the rules on campaigning.

Garcia said the relaxation of these guidelines is timely in light of the improving coronavirus situation in the country.

Under the current guidelines, those who are looking to hold campaign rallies are required to secure a permit 72 hours prior to the event from the CCC.

On the other hand, the Comelec is also set to issue an advisory on the temporary restraint order (TRO) issued by the Supreme Court (SC) suspending their “Operation Baklas” in public places.

“Let’s enumerate what public places are. At the same time, in private, regardless of size, is it really absolute? We need to make the most understandable instructions, advisory to all of us to know what the Comelec really commands,” he added.

On Tuesday, the SC issued a TRO stopping the poll body’s operations to dismantle illegal campaign materials.

The commission has been given 10 days to answer the petition filed by supporters of presidential candidate Vice President Leni Robredo.