DESPITE failure to submit their statements of campaign contributions (SOCE), the Omnibus Election Code doesn’t provide an administrative fine or penalty for defiant candidates who took part in the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE).
In Pateros, municipal election officer Armando Allorca said that 43 BSKE candidates in the Oct. 30 election for village chiefs, councilmen, and youth councils failed to submit their SOCE, which according to Batas Pambansa (BP) 881 is mandatory.
According to Mallorca, 374 out of 417 candidates (representing 90 percent compliance) beat the November 29 deadline for the submission of SOCE, leaving 43 bets guilty of violating the Omnibus Election Code.
However, while the submission of SOCE is mandatory, no administrative fine or penalty will be imposed on any candidate for failure to file it.
According to Comelec, the submission of SOCE covered all official candidates despite the fact that: “They were not elected; their campaign was self-funded; they neither received contributions nor incur expenditures; they did not pursue or continue their campaign; or they withdrew their candidacy unless they have officially withdrawn the same before October 19, 2023.”
The deadline was non-extendible and any SOCE filed beyond the deadline was not accepted.
“No elected candidate shall assume office unless he or she complied with the submission of SOCE and within the period allowed by law,” according to the Comelec.
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