BACOLOD City – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) in Bacolod City will be moving out soon from its existing office due to a scheduled building rehabilitation by the first quarter of next year.
City Comelec officer Kathrina Trinio-Caña has talked with Mayor Alfredo Abelardo Benitez recently about the renovation.
Two options are being considered: either to rent a building or the city will establish a new one so that other national offices can also utilize it, Trinio-Caña said.
For now, they are looking for a building to rent, which will be paid for by the city government, so that they can transfer immediately.
Trinio-Caña said they needed a building with enough space and storage because their current office is crowded.
“An office accessible for the clients, has enough space for the client’s holding area during registration, and, most of all, is not flooded during heavy rains,” she added.
A lease agreement for the 16,875-square-meter government property, where Manokan Country, Vendor’s Plaza, BAYS Center and the Comelec office are situated, was signed in October between Benitez and SM Prime Holdings Inc.
Under the 40-year lease, the private firm will pay a P21.26 million annual rental fee to the city, subject to a five percent rate increase every three years.
On the other hand, Trinio-Caña is appealing to all the candidates in the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections to file their Statements of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE) earlier than the Nov. 29 deadline.
“This is to avoid penalties,” Trinio-Caña stressed.
As of Nov. 7, only one official filed a SOCE.
City director Ma. Maredith Joy Madayag of the Department of Interior and Local Government said the SOCE is one of the requirements of newly elected officials before assuming office./PN
