President Ferdinand R. Marcos on Thursday defended his move to sign into law a bill postponing the December 2022 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections to October 2023, saying Congress has the power to postpone the barangay polls.
“Well, we have sufficient precedent for the postponement of Barangay and SK Elections. Nakailan na tayo. In my time lang in government, I have seen I think four maybe five postponements,” the President said in a media interview following his speech at the 48th Philippine Business Conference and Exposition of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
“And so I think in terms of the law, it is well within the powers of Congress to postpone those elections because that is not contained in the Constitution. It is contained in the Local Government Code,” he said.
Republic Act No. 11935, signed by Marcos on Oct. 10, 2022, postponed the December 2022 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) Elections.
The Barangay and SK polls, originally set on Decembet 5 of this year, were rescheduled to the last Monday of October 2023.
Under the new law, until their successors shall have been duly elected and qualified, all incumbent barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan officials shall remain in office unless sooner removed or suspended for cause. (PND)
