MANILA – Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairperson George Garcia on Wednesday warned that postponing the 2026 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) could result in the loss of around PHP8 billion already spent for preparations.
Garcia said the Comelec is ready to hold the elections as scheduled on Nov. 2, 2026, and stressed that any decision to postpone the polls rests with Congress.
“We simply state that the Comelec has already spent PHP8 billion,” Garcia said during the Kapihan sa Manila Hotel forum.
He explained that the Comelec has a total BSKE budget of PHP19 billion, with PHP9 billion earmarked for teachers’ honoraria, PHP1 billion for training and another PHP1 billion for deployment expenses.
Garcia said much of the PHP8 billion already spent went to election equipment and other preparatory activities.
Some expenses, he noted, cannot be recovered if the elections are deferred. These include overtime pay for personnel, while supplies such as ballpens and indelible ink could deteriorate. Printed ballots, however, may still be usable if the elections are held at a later date.
“If the November elections do not proceed, that PHP8 billion would truly go to waste,” Garcia said.
He also dismissed speculation about a possible postponement, saying the Comelec would continue preparing for the Nov. 2 polls unless Congress decides otherwise.
“That is a highly political issue. We cannot interfere in that matter,” Garcia said, adding that the poll body remains fully prepared to conduct the elections.
The Comelec chief noted that the BSKE has already been postponed once. Elections were held in 2023 and were supposed to take place again in 2025 before Congress moved them to 2026.
Garcia also underscored the importance of holding elections regularly, saying repeated postponements could create uncertainty in governance and leadership transitions.
“Having regular elections is crucial,” he said, noting that fixed terms provide certainty over when officials leave office or are retained by voters.
Senator Francis Escudero has proposed extending the terms of barangay and SK officials from four to five years. A similar measure in the House seeks to defer the Nov. 2 elections until 2028.
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