Kick off of campaign period for local bets sees grand ‘baklas’ ops

Commission on Elections Chairman George Erwin Garcia
INQUIRER PHOTO / NIÑO JESUS ORBETA

MANILA, Philippines — The campaign period for local candidates begins Friday, marking the start of the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) all-encompassing jurisdiction to about 44,000 local aspirants.

Comelec Chairman George Erwin Garcia led the Oplan Baklas in Pritil Market in Manila.

This operation saw “one truckload” worth of illegal campaign materials being dismantled.

READ: Local campaign heats up; posters are put on top of each other – Comelec

“We have been waiting to do this for so long,” Garcia said in an interview during the sidelines of the operation.

Before the campaign period, the Comelec could not dismantle the illegal campaign materials of local candidates.

But Garcia noted that the poll body will not just dismantle such materials.

The Comelec will write a notice to remove erring campaign materials, noncompliance of which may lead to an election offense.

Garcia also ordered local bets to “train” their staff not to put campaign materials in electric posts and wires — including not nailing tarpaulins on trees.

“The candidates’ staff should have removed their campaign materials before this day,” Garcia said.

The campaign period for local candidates ends May 10, two days before election day on May 12.