Comelec allows Barangay, SK officials to join campaign activities

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MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) is allowing elected barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) officials to participate in partisan political and campaign activities for the 2025 elections.

Comelec Minute Resolution 24-1001 states that the poll body resolves “[t]o exclude elected barangay and SK officials from the coverage of the prohibition against intervention in any election campaign or engagement in partisan political activities.”

This upholds a Supreme Court ruling that prohibition to engage in political activities during election period only applies to civil service officers and employees, and does not include elected officials.

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However, the poll body said that the exemption is subject to limitation, provided that “they do not solicit contributions from their subordinates or subject them to any of the acts prohibited in the Omnibus Election Code [OEC], particularly Section 261 (i).”

Further, the poll body also excludes job order (JO) and contract of service (COS)  workers in the government from the prohibition of participating in any partisan political activities or election campaign under the Article IX-B, Section 2(4) of the 1987 Constitution, Section 261(i) of the OEC.

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The Comelec noted that the prohibition in Sec. 261 (i) of the OEC and the Article IX-B Section 2 (4) “are notably silent on the application thereof to non-Civil Service personnel such as those engaged under JO and COS.”

But it said that the exemption should “be without prejudice to the liability of any person who would use under any guise whatsoever, directly or indirectly, public funds or money to employ JO and COS workers for the purpose of any election campaign or partisan political activity.”