Distributing anything of value such as t-shirts, fans, caps, and ballers to campaign for the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) could be considered vote-buying or vote-selling, the Commission on Elections said on Thursday.
Meanwhile, 65 petitions to cancel certificates of candidacy (COC) and disqualify candidates for the nationwide village elections have been filed, the poll body said.
Also, two alleged accomplices in the killing of a village chief seeking reelection in the upcoming BSKE in Taal town in Batangas province were arrested, a police official said on Wednesday.
At a public briefing, Comelec spokesperson Rex Laudiangco stressed that the maximum size for posters and tarpaulins is 2×3 feet; 8.5×14 inches for leaflets and fliers; and 3×8 feet for banners and streamers.
“Any other kind of campaign paraphernalia such as t-shirts, ball caps, baller bands, and others, because they have value, that could be considered as a method of buying votes,” he said.
A memorandum earlier released by Comelec indicated that the “distribution of campaign materials which contain the name, image, logo, brand, insignia, color motif, initials, and other symbol or graphic representation that is capable of being associated with a candidate or party, and is exclusively intended to draw the attention of the public or a segment thereof to promote or oppose, directly or indirectly, the election of a candidate to a public office are prohibited.”