Electoral Code - Samahan 2012

7/30/2019 Electoral Code - Samahan 2012

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COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS

ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY

SAMAHAN CENTRAL BOARD

ELECTION GUIDELINES

AY 2012-2013 Revision


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Commission on Elections

Ateneo de Davao UniversityE. Jacinto St., Davao City

THE GENERAL ELECTORAL CODE

A. GENERAL PROVISIONS

Section 1 This Code shall be known as the Ateneo de Davao University GENERALELECTORAL CODE.

Section 2 For brevity, the following offices shall be addressed herein as:

Commission on Elections COMELEC

SAMAHAN Central Board SAMAHAN

Section 3 This code shall govern all elections of the SAMAHAN officers, to the

extent appropriate, all plebiscites and referenda.

B. OBJECTIVES

Section 1 To let the Ateneo de Davao University student populace decide annuallyon the composition of the SAMAHAN.

Section 2 To envision a continuing election education campaign to improve thequality of students involvement in the electoral processes, ensure theelection of quality leaders and set in motion a system for periodicassessments of their performance. The latter concern would involveenlightening students on their reserve powers of recall and initiative to

stress the point that the election and proclamation of public officials arenot the end-all and be-all of the electoral processes.

Section 3 To foster an education campaign not only on the mechanics ofregistration, voting and other election laws, but also on the generaprinciples of democracy, good government and the right of suffrage as themeans to attain these ends.

Section 4 To provide excellence in service, be fair and impartial in the exercise of itspowers, so that posterity, progress and good governance thereby beattained through a continuing development of free, orderly, honest,peaceful and credible elections.

C. RULES AND REGULATIONS

ARTICLE 1 GENERAL RULES

Section 1 The SAMAHAN Central Board General Elections. This election shaltake place annually during the second semester before the school year


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ends. It is in this election wherein the SAMAHAN President, the SecretaryGeneral, the Treasurer and the cluster head/s are elected.

1.1 If this election shall be declared a failure, it is the discretion of theCommission on Elections to conduct a special election.

Section 2 A candidate may run independently or under a political party.

Section 3 All existing political parties must be registered to the Commission onElections. Existing political parties are parties registered with the Office ofStudent Affairs at the beginning of the school year as clubs or newlyformed parties. To be registered to the Commission on Elections, eachparty must submit the following requirements one (1) week after the officialrelease of the guidelines:

a. Name of the Political Partyb. Status of the Clubc. Updated List of Officers and Members

ARTICLE 2 GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS FOR CANDIDACY

Section 1 An aspirant for any position must be a continuous bona fide student fromthe first day of campaign to the last day of his/her term of the Ateneo deDavao University and, the School of Arts and Sciences, the School ofEngineering and Architecture, the School of Business and Governancethe School of Education or the School of Nursing, who has enrolled in atleast 15 units, except:

a. When the reason for the lesser number of units is for the completion ofanother course, and

b. When the department only allows such number of units to be taken up.

Section 2 Aspirants must have completed at least one semester prior to thesemester when the election shall take place; and

Section 3 The aspirant must be at least a second year student to qualify forcandidacy.

Section 4 The aspirant must possess leadership qualities and a sense ofresponsibility.

Section 5 The aspirant must possess the commitment to the job and the availabilityto carry out the mandate of the position.

Section 6 The aspirant must have no disciplinary record during his/her entire collegeterm as defined by the University Handbook.

Section 7 Students who are under any of the following conditions shall not beallowed to run in any elections:


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a. If the aspirant is on probation as identified and categorized by theUniversity Standards Committee;

b. If the aspirant has a failing mark in any minor or major subjects on theFirst Semester Certificate of Grades directly prior to elections asauthenticated by the Registrar;

c. If the aspirant has been debarred (FD) or has received an incomplete(INC) grade as stated in the First Semester Certificate of Gradesdirectly prior to elections authenticated by the Registrar; and

d. If the aspirant has a blank grade as depicted in the First SemesterCertificate of Grades directly prior to elections.

Section 8 The aspirant for the SAMAHAN Elections must submit the followingdocuments in a long brown envelope to the COMELEC on or before thedate and time the COMELEC declares as the deadline of filing his/hercandidacy:

a. An accomplished Commission on Elections Certificate of Candidacywith recent 2x2 picture;

b. First Semester Certificate of Grades directly prior to elections, which

must be from the Office of the University Registrar, with university sealand duly signed.

c. A letter of recommendation duly signed by the DepartmentChairperson/Academic Council Head.

d. A Certificate of Good Moral Character signed by the Office of StudentAffairs,

e. An Organization List. The list would certify the current position/s andorganizations the applicant has;

f. Leave of Absence if the aspirant holds a position in his/her class, clubsor organizations, within the university.

Section 9 Deadline for submission of requirements shall be strictly observed. It ishighly recommended that the GMC and the Certificate of Grades besubmitted together with the other aforementioned requirements. Howeverthe Commission on Elections shall allow adequate time extension as itmay deem appropriate. Partial fulfillment of requirements and timeextensions aside from the GMC and Certificate of Grades shall not beallowed.

ARTICLE 3 CAMPAIGN RULES AND PARAPHERNALIA

Section 1 The campaign shall primarily occur at the Ateneo de Davao University

Jacinto Campus.

Section 2 Posting of campaign materials shall be allowed only in COMELECdesignated walkways, bulletin boards and stilts, as approved by the Officeof Student Affairs and the Physical Plant and General Services Office.

Appropriate notice of such areas shall be given during the meeting withthe candidates.


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Section 3 Room to room campaign is not allowed unless otherwise, the teacherapproves of it. It shall only be allowed during:

a. The interval in between classes or break time, andb. Activity periods.

Section 4 Chalk and marker brigade shall be strictly prohibited.

Section 5 INTERNET CAMPAIGN

5.1 Internet or via the World Wide Web Campaign will be allowed to cateradditional promotional campaign for the aspiring candidate.

5.2 The material that will be posted must clearly contain the name of thecandidate, the date of the particular election and/or the party beingsupported.

5.3 The content of the materials must not inflict or damage any candidateparty, the university or any related or unrelated individual.

Section 6 Banners, and leaflets are allowed by the Commission to be utilized duringthe campaign and need not be submitted to the Commission for approvalprovided that it does not contain anything that may inflict damage to anycandidate, any party, to the university or to any related or unrelatedindividual. The following should be present in the campaign materials:a. The Name/s of the Candidate/s;b. The Position Aspired for; and most especiallyc. The Date and Venue of the Election and other Election related

activities such as the Launching of Candidates and the Miting deAvance.

Section 7 BANNERS

7.1 Banners shall refer to hand-held campaign paraphernalia which shalcontain the name of the candidate, the date of the particular electionand/or the party being supported.

7.4 The banners must be carried by the candidate or any campaignpersonnel only during the campaign period.

Section 8 STREAMERS

8.1 A party is allowed to have a maximum number of two streamers, eachmeasuring 2 ft. in length and 8 ft. in width in LANDSCAPE layout.

8.2 A candidate, whether belonging to a political party, or running asindependent is permitted to have a maximum number of two streamersmeasuring 2 ft. in length and 8 ft. in width in landscape layout.


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8.3 The streamers will be posted at the gazebo or at the designated areasof the Physical Plant and General Services office of the University.

8.4 Streamers shall be submitted to the COMELEC for approval.

Section 9 LEAFLETS

9.1 A party is given an unlimited maximum number of leaflets providedthat the size will not exceed one-half () of a short bond paper.

9.2 Candidates, independent or belonging to a political party are allowedto have an unlimited maximum number of leaflets, provided that it will notexceed one-fourth () of a short bond paper.

9.3 Candidates must ensure that the content of the leaflets shall not inflictdamage to any candidate, party or the university or any related orunrelated individual.

Section 10 AUDIO-VISUAL PRESENTATION

10.1 All candidates are encouraged to submit a 30-second audio-visuapresentation to the COMELEC.

10.2 Each 30-second AVP will be compiled into a single video to beshown during the campaign period at areas where it would be highlyvisible.

10.3 Failure to submit the AVP on the agreed date will deprive thecandidate the privilege to be part of the official AVP of the Commission.

10.4 Videos is recommended to have a minimum resolution of 1280x720(720p HD) with a maximum resolution of 2048x1152 (2K) with an aspectratio of 16:9 in NTSC. Videos should be running in 24, 29.89, 30 framesper second. Videos must be rendered, compressed, encoded in either ofthe following formats: Quick Time MOV, MPEG-4(mp4). These guidelinesare intended to conform with the guidelines for the use of the cafeteria TVscreens.

Section 11 A candidate may include in his/her campaign paraphernalia pictures ornames of other candidates but the same will be accounted for as his/her

own paraphernalia.

Section 12 Assignment of posting areas for streamers and posters will be determinedduring the meeting with the candidates via drawing of lots.

Section 13 Streamers submitted for the Commissions approval will be released atmost, two days after submission. Submission must be made to the properCOMELEC Commissioner. Campaign paraphernalia will be posted at anytime the COMELEC is done approving them.


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Section 14 The COMELEC shall not be held responsible for the loss or damage of thecampaign paraphernalia during the campaign period.

Section 15 Samples of other campaign paraphernalia for distribution not mentionedabove must be submitted to the COMELEC prior to distribution.Furthermore, if the supporters of the candidate/s will also providecampaign paraphernalia, it should be also submitted to the commission for

deliberation before distribution and promotion. In addition, candidate/smust ensure these campaign paraphernalia will not inflict damage onschool property, such as stickers and paint, and it should not also containhidden or obvious messages against any other candidate, administratorsfaculty, staff and the like.

Section 16 Monetary endowments are strictly prohibited.

Section 17 Public assemblies, such as symposium and sponsorship of activitiesduring the campaign period by a political party, individual candidate orindependent candidate are allowed. However, the candidate shall inform

the Commission on Elections and the Office of Student Affairs forapproval. Participation in any school activity during the campaign period isalso permitted.

Section 18 It is imperative that all political parties, with their candidates included andindependent candidates inform the Commission on Elections, in writing, oftheir proposed activities, individually or as a group, prior to seeking Officeof Students Affairs approval. Concerned parties will be sanctioned for notproperly informing the Commission regarding this matter.

Section 19 Any club who wishes to endorse a candidate must provide a letter to the

Commission on Elections indicating their endorsements.

Section 20 The club/organization is only allowed to create campaign material only tobe posted in the organizations bulletin board.

Section 21 SICO, CCO, GACP, and the Students Executive Committees are noallowed to express forms of partisan by supporting any candidate/s in anyform. Moreover, the SAMAHAN, as a student government, is expected toshow neutrality, is strictly not allowed to endorse any candidate.Candidates who are on leave in any of these aforementionedorganizations must not utilize the said organization in their campaign (i.e

use of Samahan logo).Moreover, any incumbent SAMAHAN officer who wishes to violatethis section is required to submit a Letter of Resignation to theCommission on Elections Office.

Section 22 CAMPAIGN MANAGER

22.1 The campaign manager shall serve as the legal representative andofficial contact person on all matters pertaining from the start of the


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campaign until the proclamation day for the SAMAHAN General ElectionsIf ever, that there are special events that the Commission will handle, thecampaign manager should be always present and will be automatically therepresentative of a political party or candidate in question, if the candidateis not around.

22.2 Each political party is required to have at least one campaignmanager. An independent candidate has the option to have a campaign

manager, but it is encouraged that both candidate and campaign managerwill be two different beings at the same time.

22.3 The campaign manager must be a bona fide student of the Ateneode Davao University and, the School of Arts and Sciences, the School ofEngineering and Architecture, the School of Business and GovernanceSchool of Education, or the School of Nursing.

22.4 The campaign manager must submit the following requirements tothe COMELEC on or before the date specified by the Commission:

a. Leave of absence if he/she holds a position in his/her class, clubs ororganizations, within the university.

b. Accomplished COMELEC Campaign Managers form with recent 2x2picture

c. Requirements should be attached to the COC of the aspirant or thehighest position aspirant if he/she is the campaign manager of apolitical party.

Section 23 After the meeting with the candidates, the candidates shall affix theirsignatures on the document designated to formally hold their knowledgeas such witnessed by the Commission on Elections Commissioners

headed by the Chairperson. Changes in time and venue shall be at thediscretion of the COMELEC, with the advance notice given to all parties.

23.1 In case the candidate could not attend the said presentation due tovalid reasons approved by the Commission, he/she shall present a formaletter stating the reason/s of such absence with evidence (e.g. medicalcertificate) ascertaining the validity of the excuse attached to the letter. Itis with the discretion of the Commission to consider the reason valid or notafter a deliberation.

Section 24 Teaching and non-teaching staff and the Administration are prohibited

from campaigning for any candidate or political party. They are strictlyprohibited from doing smear campaigns or spreading arbitrary propagandafor or against any candidate or political party. Thus, no administration,faculty and staff endorsements will be allowed for the election.

Section 25 At the end of campaign period, any means of campaign within theuniversity and in the internet (i.e. Sharing and posting of photos) are notallowed. Candidates should also inform his/her supporters to strictly


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observe this end of campaign period as to avoid any complaints filedagainst them.

Section 26 All campaign materials (within the university and in the internet) that wilbe posted in the beginning of this election must be removed on the lastday of the contest period, as a responsibility of the candidate and thepolitical party to keep the image of the university as a clean and greencampus.

Section 27 Any candidate who wishes to retract his/her candidacy shall submit a letterto the COMELEC stating clearly the reason/s for such retraction.

ARTICLE 4 VOTERS REQUIREMENTS

Section 1 All bona fide students enrolled in the Ateneo de Davao University and inthe School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering and Architecture,School of Business or Governance, School of Education and School ofNursing can vote.

Section 2 Bona fide students shall refer to all undergraduates, including cross-enrollees and special students.

ARTICLE 5 ELECTION PROCEDURES

Section 1 The polling center shall be determined by the Commission on Electionsand will be announced extensively at least two weeks before the elections.

Section 2 The SAMAHAN Central Board General Elections will be facilitated by theCOMELEC Commissioners and the official COMELEC Volunteers.

Section 3 Upon entering the voting precinct, the voter shall head to any booth tovote. He/she shall present his/her School Identification Card to theCOMELEC Commissioner in charge, the COMELEC AssociateCommissioners or the official COMELEC Volunteer who will scan his/herID using a barcode scanner.

3.1 If there are cases such as faded barcodes, Commissioners on eachcomputer are given access to manually input the barcodes or search viathe voters names.

Section 4 Inside a voting booth wherein a computer is provided, the voter shall click

on the candidates he/she wishes to vote. After the voter has selected thecandidates of his choice, a recap page will be shown to give the voter theopportunity to make sure that he/she clicked the appropriate namescorrectly. The voter shall submit the page and exit the booth when donevoting.

Section 5 Once the vote has been casted, the computer then transmits theinformation to the server through the switch. The server has a databasethat stores the information and can count the votes in real-time.


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Section 6 THE CHECKER COMPUTER

6.1 A checker computer should be available to check if a voter has onlyvoted once when it enters the semi-booth.

6.2 If the voter brought more than one ID, the checker computerimmediately displays warning to the commissioner handling the computer

and then reverts the vote upon the request of the commissioner.

6.3 The checker computer also computes and displays voters turnoutdepending on the set schedule.

Section 7 The voter shall undergo the voting procedures in silence and withoutdisturbance in accordance with the instructions provided herein.

Section 8 The COMELEC Commissioner in charge, the COMELEC AssociateCommissioners or the official COMELEC Volunteer shall hand the voter astub/sticker as a proof of voting.

ARTICLE 6 POLL WATCHERS

Section 1 All bona fide undergraduate students of the Ateneo de Davao UniversitySchool of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering and ArchitectureSchool of Business and Governance, School of Education and School ofNursing can become poll watchers.

Section 2 Each candidate is allowed to have two poll watchers per voting day.

Section 3 The name of the poll watchers of candidates shall be submitted to the

Commission on Elections on or before the date specified by theCommission

Section 4 Poll watchers must strictly wear the official identification card provided bythe aspiring candidate, duly authenticated by the Commission, while onduty. Strictly, no ID, no recognition of duty as a poll watcher.

4.1 The Poll Watcher identification card must consist of the name of thePoll Watcher, the Name and Position of the Aspiring Candidate, the Dateof the Election and an Empty Space at the reverse side of theidentification card for the authentication of the Commission on Election.

4.2 The Aspiring Candidate cannot be admitted as a Poll Watcher. This isto avoid intimidation to the voters, and to avoid indirect or directmanipulation of the voters decision while casting their votes.

Section 5 Poll watchers should maintain a distance of five (5) meters away from thevoting precinct. In case of a room-to-room election, the poll watchers muststay at the reverse side of the room, where the ballot box is placed.


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ARTICLE 7 VIOLATIONS

Section 1 The Commission on Elections bulletin board will be updated to inform thepublic on any action committed by any candidate. If upon this writing theCommissions bulletin board is not available, a temporary bulletin boardwould be placed along the elevator for announcements.

Section 2 First violation by any candidate or political party is subject to a warning. A

section on the Commission on Elections bulletin board will enlist all thecandidates who have committed the first violation. The second violation onthe same nature, if proven guilty, shall merit concrete sanction. Note thateach violation is separate and distinct from the other.

2.1 Concrete sanctions may include barring the candidate from running inthe current or any future elections, suspension from held office, or anyother sanctions that the COMELEC may see appropriate on thecircumstances.

Section 3 Any defamatory or malicious remark, written or verbal, explicit or implied

against any political party, individual or independent candidate, shall besubjected to deliberation and due process.

3.1 Sanctions at the discretion of the Commission on Elections with dueconsultation with the Office of Student Affairs will be given to the violationcommitted.

Section 4 All written complaints concerning any violations committed by anycandidate, political party, campaign managers, poll watchers or supportersshall be turned over to the Commission on Elections Legal Division fordeliberation, resolution, and appropriate actions. All complaints must also

bear a statement/s from at least one credible witness and attached withother evidences that will serve as a proof that such incidence of violationhappened.

Section 5 Candidates who would violate the Ateneo de Davao University GeneraElectoral Code shall be subjected to a due process which includesdeliberation, hearing, and proper sanctions.

ARTICLE 8 VOTE REQUIREMENTS

Section 1 To validate the elections, fifty percent plus one (50%+1) of the total voting

population must have cast their votes at the closing of the Elections at thetime designated by the Commission on Elections. Failure to meet thisrequirement is deemed the failure of elections. The votes will still becounted, but no Election-Victors will be declared.

1.1 Voting population may be defined as the total number of theundergraduates of the Ateneo de Davao University. It may also be definedas the total number of undergraduates under a specific cluster of the

Ateneo de Davao University.


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1.2 For the circumstance that the desired votes did not reach the requirednumber in a certain cluster, it is deemed to call as the Cluster Failure ofElection. Nonetheless, the votes for the top three positions in theSAMAHAN Central Board will be counted, as well as its Cluster Head/sbut the Cluster Head/s will not be declared an Election-Victor/s.

Section 2 For a candidate to be proclaimed winner, he/she must garner the following

votes:

a. Fifty percent plus one (50%+1) of the total votes casted for lonecandidates; or

b. The greatest number of votes for the candidates against his/heropponents.

Section 3 The Commission on Election, as the electoral body of the university,values the sanctity of every vote. Hence, the decision of the majority shalbe respected, and is deemed final and official.

ARTICLE 9 CANVASSING OF VOTES

Section 1 The canvassing shall be at the locations as determined by theCommission on Elections and shall start exactly one hour and thirtyminutes after the formal declaration of the closing of the polling center onthe final day of the elections. Changes in time shall be at the discretion ofthe Commission on Elections.

Section 2 The canvassing of votes shall be done in the presence of the COMELECModerator, the COMELEC Chairperson, and the COMELEC LegaDivision Chief. The aforementioned persons will each have unique

passwords which will be the only ones that could activate the canvassingprocedure.

Section 3 Once the canvassing procedure has been activated, the COMELECTechnical Division Chief shall, in no delay, print two copies of the electionreturns.

Section 4 The election returns shall contain the following:

a. Date of election;b. Time of printing of the election returns;

c. Total number of voters turnout;d. Total number of votes obtained by each candidate; ande. Appropriate spaces below the election return for signatures of the

COMELEC Moderator, COMELEC Chairperson, and the COMELECLegal Division Chief.

f.ARTICLE 10 PROCALAMATION OF WINNERS


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Section 1 Upon completion of the election returns, the Chairperson, along with therest of the Commissioners, shall orally and publicly announce the totanumber of votes earned by each candidate.

Section 2 In the terms that there will be a tie on a position, then the commission wilresult to a divine or supernatural intervention, with the use of the toss coin(for a tie) or drawing of lots (for more than two ties), as decided by thecommission as an electoral body. This should be done right after the

announcement of the Election-Victors.

Section 3 A Certificate of Proclamation, dully signed by the Commission on ElectionChairperson and the Legal Division, along with the COMELEC Moderatorand the Director of Student Affairs will be given to the victors of theelection on the oath taking ceremony, the first Saturday after the contestperiod, if there are no complaints that will be posted against the victors ofthe election.

ARTICLE 11 COMPLAINTS

Section 1 Any complaints or protests shall be written in black and white formaddressed to the Commission on Election as an electoral body within 48hours after the occurrence of the event in question.

1.1 In the terms of Internet Campaign issues, the material should bevisible until the end of the hearing of the case or release of the resolutionby the Commission on Elections. If ever the material from the internet thatwas posted was removed [intentionally or not], then the evidencespresented to the commission, along with the black and white complaintletter will be the only items to be discussed in the hearing for the case.Credible witness/es sworn statement may be also used as evidence.

1.2 The complaint or protest against a candidate or political party/ies shallbe in a written form. The Commission is authorized to conduct a properhearing of the complaints and shall give all parties involved an equalopportunity to be heard. The investigation and prosecution of casesinvolving violations of the election laws shall be given preference andpriority by the Commission on Elections. The investigation shalcommence without delay, and shall be resolved within five (5) workingdays from the submission of the complaint.

Section 2 The hearing shall commence upon having a quorum of the

Commissioners of the Commission. The presence of the parties,candidates and/or individuals concerned is highly required during thehearing.

Section 3 The Commission, en banc, shall confer to a decision and announce thedecision in the presence of the concerned parties.

ARTICLE 12 OFFICIAL SCREEN LAYOUT


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Section 1 The official layout of the voting screen on the computer shall have all thenames of the official candidates with their pictures. It shall be groupedaccording to the position they are running so that voters may easilydetermine the set of candidates for that position.

Section 2 While the Commission on Elections reserves the right to modify the ballotit shall nonetheless be in keeping with the spirit of the SAMAHAN GeneraElections ballot.

ARTICLE 13 MINUTES OF THE ELECTIONS AND SAFEKEEPING OF ELECTORALDOCUMENTS

Section 1 The Commission on Elections shall keep records of the events during alelections in its minutes book, held by the Commission on ElectionsCommissioner on duty.

Section 2 The Commission on Elections shall monitor the voters turnout at the least,every shift.

Section 3 The minutes book shall formally hold all incidents that may be contrary tothe standard procedure of the elections, with the corresponding date andtime of the event.

Section 4 All documents and paraphernalia after the elections shall be placed in theCommission on Elections Office for safekeeping.

ARTICLE 14 ELECTION OFFENSES

Section 1 The following shall be guilty of an election offense:

a. Vote buying and selling - Any student, candidate, club, andorganization who gives, offers or promises anything for value, directlyor indirectly, any expenditure to be made to any student, candidate,club, or organization in order to induce anyone or the public in generalto vote for or against any candidate or withhold his/her vote in election.

b. Endorsement of Incumbent Officers - Any government office(SAMAHAN, Division Representatives, CCO, GACP and Commissionon Elections members) who coerces or intimidates or compels, or inany manner influence, directly or indirectly, campaign for vote oragainst any candidate and party for the nomination or selection of

candidates.

c. Appearance in Office - the Leave of Absence (LOA) strictly means tobe out of office for the mean time until elections. The LOA contains thename of the person that is in charge of the task/s and responsibilitiesto be carried.

d. Unlawful Circulation - Election campaign paraphernalias which aresubject for approval from the commission but were already circulated


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prior to the needed approval. The Commission has the authority toconfiscate or remove the election paraphernalia if found violated thissection.

e. Unlawful Campaign on Election Day/s - It is unlawful to undertake anypropaganda on the day of election, for or against any candidate or anypolitical party within the polling precinct.

f. Unlawful Campaign Personnel - The following are prohibited toendorse and campaign for any candidate or political party:

1. Commission on Elections Commissioner, AssociateCommissioners Moderator, Volunteer and authorized ElectionOfficer

2. Incumbent officers who will use the name of their office3. Non-Teaching Staff includes the Personnel working in the

Administration, including the utility.4. Canteen Personnel - Any person working in the food court and

the cafeteria found in the basement and the satellite canteens

This section also includes the Stall Owners, in-charge andJanitors.

g. Outside School Campaign - The elections is only limited to the AteneoJacinto Campus. However, in the terms of Internet Campaign, it shouldbe only limited to the bona fide Students of the Ateneo de DavaoUniversity under the Tertiary Unit of the University (School of Arts andSciences, College of Engineering and Architecture, School of Businessand Governance and College of Nursing).

h. Other prohibitions on candidacy and campaign:

1. Any candidate or political party that holds political meetingsearlier than the period fixed in this Guidelines.

2. Any person who abstracts, destroy or cancels any Certificate ofCandidacy duly filed and which has not been cancelled uponorder of the Commission.

3. Any person who misleads the Commission by submitting anyfalse or spurious reports to the prejudice of a candidate orpolitical party.

i. On Voting - Any person who votes more than once, in the same

election, or who, not being registered voter, votes in the election.

Section 2 Any person found guilty of any election offense under this guideline shalbe sanctioned by the following:

a. Posting of ELECTION OFFENSE/S committed by the candidate orpolitical party to the public, Commission on Elections Bulletin Board,candidates Stilt Board and in the polling precinct/s.


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b. Prohibition/Banning of campaign for 3 days.

c. Surrender 30% of all campaign materials (posters, streamers, id,bookmarks, leaflets, etc) and subject for safekeeping. Failure to meetthis section will mean the Commissions right to enforce its authority todo the confiscation of campaign materials.

Section 3 The investigations and prosecution of cases involving violations of theelection laws shall be given preference and priority by the Commission onElections and involved candidate/s or party/ies.

D. INTERNAL CONDITIONS and FINAL PROVISION

Section 1 No complaint must come from the Commission on Elections Body.

Section 2 No action must be taken by the Commission on Election, as a wholeunless there is a complaint. However, if a Commissioner sees a violation

directly or on the scene, then s/he has the authority to give a verbalwarning to the candidate, and must gather enough evidences to supportsuch claim. Nonetheless, the Commissioner is highly mandated by theconstitution to be neutral at all times, and avoid biases in promulgatingthese guidelines of election. In addition, the commissioner is encouragedto stimulate witnesses to file a complaint for such violation. Furthermore, itshould be immediately reported to the whole commission, and be given athorough deliberation.

Section 3 No one is allowed to interpret the Guidelines except the Commission onElections.

Section 4 Separability clause - If any section or provision of this Act is heldunconstitutional or invalid, any other section or provision not affectedthereby shall remain valid and effective.

Section 5 Jurisdiction of the Commission - The Commission shall have exclusivejurisdiction of all proclamation and be the sole judge of all contests relatingto the elections, returns, and qualifications of candidates and politicaparties. It may motu proprioor upon written petition, and after due noticeand hearing, order the sanction to any candidate or political party, if onehas been made, as evidence shall warrant in accordance with the

succeeding elections. Furthermore, if there are incidents that arise, and itis not written in this GENERAL ELECTORAL CODE, on how to resolveunprecedented issues, then, the Commission on Elections, as an electorabody, will be given the authority, as vested in the constitution, to set therules in the matter of election, immediately.

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Revised by:

Catherine Joy MataChief, Legal Division

Esther Salvie TupasDeputy, Legal Division

Jason T. OccidentalChairperson

Recommending Approval:

Almira Jane VillegasSecretary General

Jenny Mae SaldaaChief, Finance Division

April LedesmaChief, Human Resource Division

Clemarie M. SecuyaChief, Technical Division

Jett Aeizl PogoyChief, Events Division

Albert Mardione MozoChief, Logistics Division

Adrian AblazoChief, Promotions Division

Marian MicianoDeputy, Human Resource Division

Ria MaghuyopDeputy, Promotions Division

Alexene Joyce MonterdeDeputy, Events Division

Clarence Daniel CawadDeputy, Finance Division

Arielle Sta. AnaDeputy Secretary General

Noted by:

Atty. Pilariza Racho-BaldovinoModerator


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ANNEX

CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES

Discernment Program & Deadline of COC February 2, 1:00PM-

5:00PM, J301

Start of Campaign Period February 3, 12:01AM

Launching of Candidates February 8, 4:00PM-5:30PM, Open

Field

Automated Elections Demo and Dry Run February 18, 4:00PM-

5:30PM,Thibault Grounds

Miting de Avance February 20, 4:00PM-5:30PM, Open Field

End of Campaign Period February 20, 6:00PM

Elections:

February 21 & 22 7:00AM 8:30PM, Thibault Grounds

February 23 7:30AM 2:00PM, Thibault Grounds

Announcement of Winners February 23 3:00PM, Thibault

Grounds

Electoral Code - Samahan 2012

Documents

Transcript of Electoral Code - Samahan 2012