Comelec readies 9,000 PNP personnel for electoral board duties

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will train 9,000 personnel of the Philippine National Police (PNP) to serve as contingent electoral board members for the first Bangsamoro parliamentary elections in September this year, its chairperson George Erwin Garcia said on Wednesday.

Garcia said that these PNP personnel will have to be duly-certified by the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) in operating the automated counting machines to be used in the elections.

READ: Some teachers replaced by cops for poll duties in Cotabato City – Comelec

“We have 9,000 PNP personnel on standby that we will train to be issued DOST certificates. If any teachers will back out from their duties, we have personnel on standby,” Garcia said in a Kapihan sa Manila Bay forum.

Garcia recounted an incident in the 2022 elections where some teachers in Cotabato City who served as electoral board members backed out of their election duties due to fear for their safety. They were replaced by trained personnel from the PNP.

“It’s a good thing that the Comelec had PNP personnel on standby, who were also duly-certified by the DOST to handle machines,” Garcia added.

READ: Comelec ready for BARMM polls, BSKE, says Garcia

With this, Garcia said that the trained PNP personnel will also receive honoraria like the teachers who will fulfill their election duties in the region.

He added that aside from the P2,000 increase across the board for honoraria of the teachers, there will be an additional P1,000 to their pay. He noted that the honoraria must be given on election day itself.

Garcia also shared that the poll body was given P3 billion for the conduct of the parliamentary elections. He earlier said that a huge chunk of the budget will be allotted for the pay of the teachers who will serve as electoral board members.

He added that the Bangsamoro government gave them additional P500 million funds, which they will use for the voters’ education in the region and other election expenditures.

The elections will be held on September 14, 2026, after being postponed four times. Voters can cast their votes from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., while senior citizens, pregnant women, and persons with disabilities can avail themselves of the early voting option, which starts at 5 a.m. /cb