The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will have the final say if it will grant the Metro Manila Council’s request to suspend voter registration in the National Capital Region (NCR).
Presidential spokesperson Harry Roque issued the statement when asked about the action of the Inter-Agency Task Force for the management of emerging infectious (IATF) regarding the MMC proposal.
The MMC wants to postpone voter registration until January 2021 or until NCR is placed under modified general community quarantine (MGCQ) to prevent the spread of Covid-19 in the region.
Roque said while the IATF agreed with the recommendation of MMC, it defers to the decision of Comelec.
“We [IATF] can only recommend to the Comelec. But the final decision will be the Comelec’s because it is a constitutional body tasked with the conduct of voter’s registration.” Roque said.
Earlier this month, Comelec said it is not keen on deferring yet again the voter registration in NCR, which has already suspended it for six months because community quarantine.
It expressed concern that the shorter voter registration period will lead to more people crowding in registration offices.
The voter registration resumed on Sept. 2, 2020 and is scheduled to end on Sept. 30, 2021.