DAGUPAN CITY — The Commission on Elections (Comelec) provincial office in Pangasinan is reminding candidates to complete their requirements before filing their certificate of candidacy (CoC).
Lawyer Marino Salas, provincial election supervisor, said Comelec will not accept the CoC if the requirements are not complete.
“Nakikiusap kami, bago pumunta dito, tignang mabuti ang kanilang inyong CoC, huwag nating kumpletuhin dito sa office lalo na yong documentary stamp, signature, notary, and the name to appear in the ballot (We are pleading the candidates, please check your CoCs well, avoid completing your CoC here at our office especially the documentary stamp, signature, notary and the name to appear in the ballot). Our ministerial power is to receive the CoC,” he said in an interview Thursday.
Salas also reiterated the rule on candidate’s declaration of political party.
“Kung walang Certificate of Nomination (CONA) from their political party, hindi namin ipipilit. Pero sa rules, it is very clear that it is simultaneous filing of those documents. (If they have no Certificate of Nomination (CONA) from their political party, we will not insist. But in the rules, it is very clear that it is simultaneous filing of those documents). Otherwise, he/she is considered as independent candidate,” he said.
A candidate, he added, is allowed one alias or nickname in order not to confuse voters.
Aside from the documentary stamps, candidates are also required by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) to submit a copy of the filed CoC and pay at the BIR a PHP500 registration fee, Salas said.
He added that the new requirement, which was first implemented in the recent Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Election, is covered by the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Law. (Liwayway Yparraguirre/PNA)
