The Commission on Elections pledges to pay the honoraria of the 660 support staff who served in the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental, on October 30, its spokesperson John Rex Laudiangco said Thursday, Nov. 16.
Kabankalan City Mayor Benjie Miranda earlier disclosed that the 660 BSKE support staff had not received their honoraria due to an honest mistake made by the Office of the City Election Officer – Kabankalan City in the process of hiring their services, Laudiangco noted in press statement posted on the Comelec Facebook page.
Miranda also said the city government has no obligation to pay the 660 BSKE support staff and
it has no allotted budget for the payment of honoraria amounting to P 3,700,000.
“Due to this unprecedented incident, the COMELEC has taken the proactive step of paying the honoraria of all 660 BSKE 2023 support staff in Kabankalan City, Negros Occidental. Each support staff is entitled to receive P 5,500 as an honorarium for the election services they rendered,” Laudiangco said.
On the other hand, an investigation is underway to determine the administrative and or criminal liability of the COMELEC field officers involved in this incident, he added.*