Comelec sets Pasay recall polls: April 15

The Pasay City mayoralty recall elections will be held on April 15, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) head announced yesterday.

In a press conference, Comelec chairman Harriet Demetriou said the filing of certificates of candidacy will be scheduled from March 15 to 17, and the campaign period will be from March 15 to April 13. The election period, Demetriou said, will last up to April 28.

The constitution and submission of boards of election inspectors and boards of canvassers will be from March 22 to April 5. Scheduled from March 22 to April 15 is the posting of voters lists.

Other recall elections for the mayoralty in the municipalities of Mercedes, Camarines Norte and Sta. Rita, Samar will be announced later, the Comelec said. The date for recall elections for vice mayor of General Tinio, Nueva Ecija, will also be announced soon.

In Pasay City, incumbent Pasay City Mayor Jovito Claudio is expected to run again.

Ricardo "Ding" Santos the retired chief security aide of former Pasay City Mayor Pablo Cuneta, who ran in the 1998 mayoralty elections against Claudio and Pewee Trinidad, and placed third, is also running. So is Trinidad.

The Comelec commissioners said Claudio does not need to resign once he files his certificate of candidacy since he is running for the same position.

On the other hand, if Vice Mayor Greg Alcera also runs, he will have to resign, Comelec officials said. And if he loses, the position of vice mayor will go to the Pasay councilor who had the highest number of votes during the 1998 elections.

The Comelec said if Claudio loses, his term ends after the winning candidate for mayor is proclaimed. It also clarified that only P15 million is needed for the recall elections in Pasay City, and not the whole contingent fund of P74,359,056.01 approved by President Estrada.

There are 213,198 registered voters in Pasay City as of January 2000, in 1,398 precincts in its 201 barangays, and two congressional districts.