Garcia to barangay execs: Join campaign but not during working hours

George Erwin Garcia —NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

MANILA, Philippines — Barangay officials are allowed to join partisan political activities like campaigning—but not during their working hours.

READ: Comelec allows Barangay, SK officials to join 2025 campaign activities

Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman George Erwin Garcia made this caveat Thursday, a day before the campaign period for local bets on March 28 (Friday).

Garcia, citing a Supreme Court ruling, reiterated that barangay officials are allowed to campaign for their preferred local candidates.

READ: ‘Be fair’, Garcia tells barangay execs to allow bets to use facilities

“If they want to do campaigning [for local candidates]—it is not prohibited anyway—but only after office hours,” Garcia said in a media forum.

“After working hours, they can do what they want since they are not covered,” he said.

Using paid hours to campaign for local candidates still falls under abuse of state resources, according to him.

“If the JOs (job orders) and casual [employees] who are being used to campaign during hours that they were supposed to be working in barangay and LGUs (local government units), that is not allowed—that is stealing from the country’s coffers,” Garcia said.

“They are being paid to work from eight (a.m.) to five (p.m.), not to campaign for candidates,” he added.

Also, Garcia reiterated that using barangay resources to campaign is not allowed.