Comelec-NCR ready for COC filing in coming days

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections’s (Comelec) National Capital Region (NCR) office would be prepared to handle the filing of certificates of candidacy in the coming days, as the second day of the COC filing saw an even slower pace, said Comelec-NCR Assistance Regional Election Director Jovencio Balanquit.

Balanquit said that so far, there have been only 21 aspirants who filed their COC for congressional seats across Metro Manila’s legislative districts — 13 on Tuesday and just eight on Wednesday.

Previously, Balanquit said that if there are 33 legislative districts in Metro Manila, and if there are at least four congressional aspirants per district, the number of COC filers can quickly go between 100 and 200.

“That’s part of the coordination that we have with the traffic people of San Juan and Quezon City on how to manage or to manage the crowds, in those cases, there are supporters accompanying the candidates.  So we are ready for that, we have (prepared) especially for the last day. As much as possible, we want the filing to be smooth and hopefully the candidates would not file simultaneously but we cannot avoid that,” Balanquit said in a briefing at the end of the second day of COC filing.

“We cannot control them.  We cannot control when they will file their COCs.  Good for some that they give us some heads up as to when they would file their COC just like other candidates.  But as a rule, we are here. We are here to receive from 8 o’clock to 5 o’clock in the afternoon whether we were notified ahead of time or not.  So we are ready for that for the last day,” he added.

Balanquit said that political strategy and superstitions — belief in lucky days for aspirants to file their COCs — may be the reason for the low turnout.

“So eight aspirants who have filed their COCs today in the NCR, for the position of the members of the House of Representatives.  Again, there are 21 COCs, so a lot more coming in the next six days of the filing of the COCs,” he said.

“Yesterday there were 13 (COC filers), that’s expected, the number of aspirants who file decreases […] and it will rise again in the next few days, so tomorrow and the next days normally are the strategizing days.  So some aspirants use a strategy,” he said.

“Others, they are ready, but they have other matters to attend to, like the nominations.”

On Wednesday, the following congressional seat aspirants filed their COCs before Comelec-NCR’s office in Barangay Greenhills, San Juan:

• Antolin Aquino Oreta III (Malabon/ National Unity Party)
• Manila 2nd District Rep. Rolando Valeriano (reelection/ National Unity Party)
• Giselle Mary Maceda (Manila 4th District/ Asenso Manileño movement)
• Manuel Luis Lopez (Manila 1st District/ Asenso Manileño movement)
• Angelo Base (Makati 1st District/ independent)
• Caloocan 1st District Rep. Oscar Malapitan (reelection/ Nacionalista Party)/li>
• Caloocan 3rd District Rep. Dean Asistio (reelection/ Lakas-CMD)
• Federico Sandoval II (Malabon/ Lakas-CMD)