COMMISSION ON ELECTIONS

ATENEO DE DAVAO UNIVERSITY

SAMAHAN CENTRAL BOARD ELECTION GUIDELINES

AY 2012-2013 Revision

Commission on Elections
Ateneo de Davao University E. Jacinto St., Davao City

THE GENERAL ELECTORAL CODE

A. GENERAL PROVISIONS Section 1 This Code shall be known as the Ateneo de Davao University GENERAL ELECTORAL CODE. For brevity, the following offices shall be addressed herein as: Commission on Elections COMELEC SAMAHAN Central Board SAMAHAN This code shall govern all elections of the SAMAHAN officers, to the extent appropriate, all plebiscites and referenda.

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B. OBJECTIVES Section 1 Section 2 To let the Ateneo de Davao University student populace decide annually on the composition of the SAMAHAN. To envision a continuing election education campaign to improve the quality of students involvement in the electoral processes, ensure the election of quality leaders and set in motion a system for periodic assessments of their performance. The latter concern would involve enlightening students on their reserve powers of recall and initiative to stress the point that the election and proclamation of public officials are not the end-all and be-all of the electoral processes. To foster an education campaign not only on the mechanics of registration, voting and other election laws, but also on the general principles of democracy, good government and the right of suffrage as the means to attain these ends. To provide excellence in service, be fair and impartial in the exercise of its powers, so that posterity, progress and good governance thereby be attained through a continuing development of free, orderly, honest, peaceful and credible elections.

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C. RULES AND REGULATIONS ARTICLE 1 Section 1 GENERAL RULES The SAMAHAN Central Board General Elections. This election shall take place annually during the second semester before the school year 2|Page

ends. It is in this election wherein the SAMAHAN President, the Secretary General, the Treasurer and the cluster head/s are elected. 1.1 If this election shall be declared a failure, it is the discretion of the Commission on Elections to conduct a special election. Section 2 Section 3 A candidate may run independently or under a political party. All existing political parties must be registered to the Commission on Elections. Existing political parties are parties registered with the Office of Student Affairs at the beginning of the school year as clubs or newly formed parties. To be registered to the Commission on Elections, each party must submit the following requirements one (1) week after the official release of the guidelines: a. Name of the Political Party b. Status of the Club c. Updated List of Officers and Members ARTICLE 2 Section 1 GENERAL QUALIFICATIONS FOR CANDIDACY An aspirant for any position must be a continuous bona fide student from the first day of campaign to the last day of his/her term of the Ateneo de Davao University and, the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering and Architecture, the School of Business and Governance, the School of Education or the School of Nursing, who has enrolled in at least 15 units, except: a. When the reason for the lesser number of units is for the completion of another 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 the semester when the election shall take place; and The aspirant must be at least a second year student to qualify for candidacy. The aspirant must possess leadership qualities and a sense of responsibility. The aspirant must possess the commitment to the job and the availability to carry out the mandate of the position. The aspirant must have no disciplinary record during his/her entire college term as defined by the University Handbook. Students who are under any of the following conditions shall not be allowed to run in any elections: 3|Page

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a. If the aspirant is on probation as identified and categorized by the University Standards Committee; b. If the aspirant has a failing mark in any minor or major subjects on the First Semester Certificate of Grades directly prior to elections as authenticated 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 Grades directly prior to elections authenticated by the Registrar; and d. If the aspirant has a blank grade as depicted in the First Semester Certificate of Grades directly prior to elections. Section 8 The aspirant for the SAMAHAN Elections must submit the following documents in a long brown envelope to the COMELEC on or before the date and time the COMELEC declares as the deadline of filing his/her candidacy: a. An accomplished Commission on Elections Certificate of Candidacy, with 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 seal, and duly signed. c. A letter of recommendation duly signed by the Department Chairperson/Academic Council Head. d. A Certificate of Good Moral Character signed by the Office of Student Affairs, e. An Organization List. The list would certify the current position/s and organizations the applicant has; f. Leave of Absence if the aspirant holds a position in his/her class, clubs or organizations, within the university. Section 9 Deadline for submission of requirements shall be strictly observed. It is highly recommended that the GMC and the Certificate of Grades be submitted together with the other aforementioned requirements. However, the Commission on Elections shall allow adequate time extension as it may deem appropriate. Partial fulfillment of requirements and time extensions aside from the GMC and Certificate of Grades shall not be allowed. CAMPAIGN RULES AND PARAPHERNALIA The campaign shall primarily occur at the Ateneo de Davao University Jacinto Campus. Posting of campaign materials shall be allowed only in COMELEC designated walkways, bulletin boards and stilts, as approved by the Office of Student Affairs and the Physical Plant and General Services Office. Appropriate notice of such areas shall be given during the meeting with the candidates.

ARTICLE 3 Section 1

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Section 3

Room to room campaign is not allowed unless otherwise, the teacher approves of it. It shall only be allowed during: a. The interval in between classes or break time, and b. Activity periods.

Section 4 Section 5

Chalk and marker brigade shall be strictly prohibited. INTERNET CAMPAIGN 5.1 Internet or via the World Wide Web Campaign will be allowed to cater additional promotional campaign for the aspiring candidate. 5.2 The material that will be posted must clearly contain the name of the candidate, the date of the particular election and/or the party being supported. 5.3 The content of the materials must not inflict or damage any candidate, party, the university or any related or unrelated individual.

Section 6

Banners, and leaflets are allowed by the Commission to be utilized during the campaign and need not be submitted to the Commission for approval provided that it does not contain anything that may inflict damage to any candidate, any party, to the university or to any related or unrelated individual. The following should be present in the campaign materials: a. The Name/s of the Candidate/s; b. The Position Aspired for; and most especially c. The Date and Venue of the Election and other Election related activities such as the Launching of Candidates and the Miting de Avance. BANNERS 7.1 Banners shall refer to hand-held campaign paraphernalia which shall contain the name of the candidate, the date of the particular election and/or the party being supported. 7.4 The banners must be carried by the candidate or any campaign personnel only during the campaign period.

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Section 8

STREAMERS 8.1 A party is allowed to have a maximum number of two streamers, each measuring 2 ft. in length and 8 ft. in width in LANDSCAPE layout. 8.2 A candidate, whether belonging to a political party, or running as independent is permitted to have a maximum number of two streamers measuring 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 areas of 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 provided that the size will not exceed one-half () of a short bond paper. 9.2 Candidates, independent or belonging to a political party are allowed to have an unlimited maximum number of leaflets, provided that it will not exceed one-fourth () of a short bond paper. 9.3 Candidates must ensure that the content of the leaflets shall not inflict damage to any candidate, party or the university or any related or unrelated individual.

Section 10

AUDIO-VISUAL PRESENTATION 10.1 All candidates are encouraged to submit a 30-second audio-visual presentation to the COMELEC. 10.2 Each 30-second AVP will be compiled into a single video to be shown during the campaign period at areas where it would be highly visible. 10.3 Failure to submit the AVP on the agreed date will deprive the candidate 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 aspect ratio of 16:9 in NTSC. Videos should be running in 24, 29.89, 30 frames per second. Videos must be rendered, compressed, encoded in either of the following formats: Quick Time MOV, MPEG-4(mp4). These guidelines are intended to conform with the guidelines for the use of the cafeteria TV screens.

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A candidate may include in his/her campaign paraphernalia pictures or names of other candidates but the same will be accounted for as his/her own paraphernalia. Assignment of posting areas for streamers and posters will be determined during the meeting with the candidates via drawing of lots. Streamers submitted for the Commissions approval will be released at most, two days after submission. Submission must be made to the proper COMELEC Commissioner. Campaign paraphernalia will be posted at any time the COMELEC is done approving them. 6|Page

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The COMELEC shall not be held responsible for the loss or damage of the campaign paraphernalia during the campaign period. Samples of other campaign paraphernalia for distribution not mentioned above must be submitted to the COMELEC prior to distribution. Furthermore, if the supporters of the candidate/s will also provide campaign paraphernalia, it should be also submitted to the commission for deliberation before distribution and promotion. In addition, candidate/s must ensure these campaign paraphernalia will not inflict damage on school property, such as stickers and paint, and it should not also contain hidden or obvious messages against any other candidate, administrators, faculty, staff and the like. Monetary endowments are strictly prohibited. Public assemblies, such as symposium and sponsorship of activities during the campaign period by a political party, individual candidate or independent candidate are allowed. However, the candidate shall inform the Commission on Elections and the Office of Student Affairs for approval. Participation in any school activity during the campaign period is also permitted. It is imperative that all political parties, with their candidates included and independent candidates inform the Commission on Elections, in writing, of their proposed activities, individually or as a group, prior to seeking Office of Students Affairs approval. Concerned parties will be sanctioned for not properly informing the Commission regarding this matter. Any club who wishes to endorse a candidate must provide a letter to the Commission on Elections indicating their endorsements. The club/organization is only allowed to create campaign material only to be posted in the organizations bulletin board. SICO, CCO, GACP, and the Students Executive Committees are not allowed to express forms of partisan by supporting any candidate/s in any form. Moreover, the SAMAHAN, as a student government, is expected to show neutrality, is strictly not allowed to endorse any candidate. Candidates who are on leave in any of these aforementioned organizations must not utilize the said organization in their campaign (i.e. use of Samahan logo). Moreover, any incumbent SAMAHAN officer who wishes to violate this section is required to submit a Letter of Resignation to the Commission on Elections Office. CAMPAIGN MANAGER 22.1 The campaign manager shall serve as the legal representative and official contact person on all matters pertaining from the start of the 7|Page

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campaign until the proclamation day for the SAMAHAN General Elections. If ever, that there are special events that the Commission will handle, the campaign manager should be always present and will be automatically the representative of a political party or candidate in question, if the candidate is not around. 22.2 Each political party is required to have at least one campaign manager. An independent candidate has the option to have a campaign manager, but it is encouraged that both candidate and campaign manager will be two different beings at the same time. 22.3 The campaign manager must be a bona fide student of the Ateneo de Davao University and, the School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering and Architecture, the School of Business and Governance, School of Education, or the School of Nursing. 22.4 The campaign manager must submit the following requirements to the 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 or organizations, within the university. b. Accomplished COMELEC Campaign Managers form with recent 2x2 picture c. Requirements should be attached to the COC of the aspirant or the highest position aspirant if he/she is the campaign manager of a political party. Section 23 After the meeting with the candidates, the candidates shall affix their signatures on the document designated to formally hold their knowledge as such witnessed by the Commission on Elections Commissioners headed by the Chairperson. Changes in time and venue shall be at the discretion of the COMELEC, with the advance notice given to all parties. 23.1 In case the candidate could not attend the said presentation due to valid reasons approved by the Commission, he/she shall present a formal letter stating the reason/s of such absence with evidence (e.g. medical certificate) ascertaining the validity of the excuse attached to the letter. It is with the discretion of the Commission to consider the reason valid or not after a deliberation. Section 24 Teaching and non-teaching staff and the Administration are prohibited from campaigning for any candidate or political party. They are strictly prohibited from doing smear campaigns or spreading arbitrary propaganda for or against any candidate or political party. Thus, no administration, faculty and staff endorsements will be allowed for the election. At the end of campaign period, any means of campaign within the university and in the internet (i.e. Sharing and posting of photos) are not allowed. Candidates should also inform his/her supporters to strictly 8|Page

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observe this end of campaign period as to avoid any complaints filed against them. Section 26 All campaign materials (within the university and in the internet) that will be posted in the beginning of this election must be removed on the last day of the contest period, as a responsibility of the candidate and the political party to keep the image of the university as a clean and green campus. Any candidate who wishes to retract his/her candidacy shall submit a letter to the COMELEC stating clearly the reason/s for such retraction. VOTERS REQUIREMENTS All bona fide students enrolled in the Ateneo de Davao University and in the School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering and Architecture, School of Business or Governance, School of Education and School of Nursing can vote. Bona fide students shall refer to all undergraduates, including crossenrollees and special students. ELECTION PROCEDURES The polling center shall be determined by the Commission on Elections and will be announced extensively at least two weeks before the elections. The SAMAHAN Central Board General Elections will be facilitated by the COMELEC Commissioners and the official COMELEC Volunteers. Upon entering the voting precinct, the voter shall head to any booth to vote. He/she shall present his/her School Identification Card to the COMELEC Commissioner in charge, the COMELEC Associate Commissioners or the official COMELEC Volunteer who will scan his/her ID using a barcode scanner. 3.1 If there are cases such as faded barcodes, Commissioners on each computer are given access to manually input the barcodes or search via the 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 the candidates of his choice, a recap page will be shown to give the voter the opportunity to make sure that he/she clicked the appropriate names correctly. The voter shall submit the page and exit the booth when done voting. Once the vote has been casted, the computer then transmits the information to the server through the switch. The server has a database that stores the information and can count the votes in real-time. 9|Page

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ARTICLE 4 Section 1

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ARTICLE 5 Section 1

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Section 6

THE CHECKER COMPUTER 6.1 A checker computer should be available to check if a voter has only voted once when it enters the semi-booth. 6.2 If the voter brought more than one ID, the checker computer immediately 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 turnout depending on the set schedule.

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The voter shall undergo the voting procedures in silence and without disturbance in accordance with the instructions provided herein. The COMELEC Commissioner in charge, the COMELEC Associate Commissioners or the official COMELEC Volunteer shall hand the voter a stub/sticker as a proof of voting. POLL WATCHERS All bona fide undergraduate students of the Ateneo de Davao University, School of Arts and Sciences, School of Engineering and Architecture, School of Business and Governance, School of Education and School of Nursing can become poll watchers. Each candidate is allowed to have two poll watchers per voting day. The name of the poll watchers of candidates shall be submitted to the Commission on Elections on or before the date specified by the Commission Poll watchers must strictly wear the official identification card provided by the aspiring candidate, duly authenticated by the Commission, while on duty. Strictly, no ID, no recognition of duty as a poll watcher. 4.1 The Poll Watcher identification card must consist of the name of the Poll Watcher, the Name and Position of the Aspiring Candidate, the Date of the Election and an Empty Space at the reverse side of the identification card for the authentication of the Commission on Election. 4.2 The Aspiring Candidate cannot be admitted as a Poll Watcher. This is to avoid intimidation to the voters, and to avoid indirect or direct manipulation of the voters decision while casting their votes.

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ARTICLE 6 Section 1

Section 2 Section 3

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Poll watchers should maintain a distance of five (5) meters away from the voting precinct. In case of a room-to-room election, the poll watchers must stay at the reverse side of the room, where the ballot box is placed. 10 | P a g e

ARTICLE 7 Section 1

VIOLATIONS The Commission on Elections bulletin board will be updated to inform the public on any action committed by any candidate. If upon this writing the Commissions bulletin board is not available, a temporary bulletin board would be placed along the elevator for announcements. 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 the candidates who have committed the first violation. The second violation on the same nature, if proven guilty, shall merit concrete sanction. Note that each violation is separate and distinct from the other. 2.1 Concrete sanctions may include barring the candidate from running in the current or any future elections, suspension from held office, or any other sanctions that the COMELEC may see appropriate on the circumstances.

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Any defamatory or malicious remark, written or verbal, explicit or implied, against any political party, individual or independent candidate, shall be subjected to deliberation and due process. 3.1 Sanctions at the discretion of the Commission on Elections with due consultation with the Office of Student Affairs will be given to the violation committed.

Section 4

All written complaints concerning any violations committed by any candidate, political party, campaign managers, poll watchers or supporters shall be turned over to the Commission on Elections Legal Division for deliberation, resolution, and appropriate actions. All complaints must also bear a statement/s from at least one credible witness and attached with other evidences that will serve as a proof that such incidence of violation happened. Candidates who would violate the Ateneo de Davao University General Electoral Code shall be subjected to a due process which includes deliberation, hearing, and proper sanctions. VOTE REQUIREMENTS 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 the time designated by the Commission on Elections. Failure to meet this requirement is deemed the failure of elections. The votes will still be counted, but no Election-Victors will be declared. 1.1 Voting population may be defined as the total number of the undergraduates of the Ateneo de Davao University. It may also be defined as the total number of undergraduates under a specific cluster of the Ateneo de Davao University. 11 | P a g e

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ARTICLE 8 Section 1

1.2 For the circumstance that the desired votes did not reach the required number in a certain cluster, it is deemed to call as the Cluster Failure of Election. Nonetheless, the votes for the top three positions in the SAMAHAN Central Board will be counted, as well as its Cluster Head/s, but 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 lone candidates; or b. The greatest number of votes for the candidates against his/her opponents. 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 shall be respected, and is deemed final and official. CANVASSING OF VOTES The canvassing shall be at the locations as determined by the Commission on Elections and shall start exactly one hour and thirty minutes after the formal declaration of the closing of the polling center on the final day of the elections. Changes in time shall be at the discretion of the Commission on Elections. The canvassing of votes shall be done in the presence of the COMELEC Moderator, the COMELEC Chairperson, and the COMELEC Legal Division Chief. The aforementioned persons will each have unique passwords which will be the only ones that could activate the canvassing procedure. Once the canvassing procedure has been activated, the COMELEC Technical Division Chief shall, in no delay, print two copies of the election returns. The election returns shall contain the following: a. b. c. d. e. Date of election; Time of printing of the election returns; Total number of voters turnout; Total number of votes obtained by each candidate; and Appropriate spaces below the election return for signatures of the COMELEC Moderator, COMELEC Chairperson, and the COMELEC Legal Division Chief.

ARTICLE 9 Section 1

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f. PROCALAMATION OF WINNERS

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Section 1

Upon completion of the election returns, the Chairperson, along with the rest of the Commissioners, shall orally and publicly announce the total number of votes earned by each candidate. In the terms that there will be a tie on a position, then the commission will result 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 the commission as an electoral body. This should be done right after the announcement of the Election-Victors. A Certificate of Proclamation, dully signed by the Commission on Election Chairperson and the Legal Division, along with the COMELEC Moderator and the Director of Student Affairs will be given to the victors of the election on the oath taking ceremony, the first Saturday after the contest period, if there are no complaints that will be posted against the victors of the election. COMPLAINTS Any complaints or protests shall be written in black and white form addressed to the Commission on Election as an electoral body within 48 hours after the occurrence of the event in question. 1.1 In the terms of Internet Campaign issues, the material should be visible until the end of the hearing of the case or release of the resolution by the Commission on Elections. If ever the material from the internet that was posted was removed [intentionally or not], then the evidences presented to the commission, along with the black and white complaint letter 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 shall be in a written form. The Commission is authorized to conduct a proper hearing of the complaints and shall give all parties involved an equal opportunity to be heard. The investigation and prosecution of cases involving violations of the election laws shall be given preference and priority by the Commission on Elections. The investigation shall commence without delay, and shall be resolved within five (5) working days from the submission of the complaint.

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ARTICLE 11 Section 1

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 the hearing. The Commission, en banc, shall confer to a decision and announce the decision in the presence of the concerned parties. OFFICIAL SCREEN LAYOUT 13 | P a g e

Section 3

ARTICLE 12

Section 1

The official layout of the voting screen on the computer shall have all the names of the official candidates with their pictures. It shall be grouped according to the position they are running so that voters may easily determine the set of candidates for that position. While the Commission on Elections reserves the right to modify the ballot, it shall nonetheless be in keeping with the spirit of the SAMAHAN General Elections ballot. MINUTES OF THE ELECTIONS AND SAFEKEEPING OF ELECTORAL DOCUMENTS The Commission on Elections shall keep records of the events during all elections in its minutes book, held by the Commission on Elections Commissioner on duty. The Commission on Elections shall monitor the voters turnout at the least, every shift. The minutes book shall formally hold all incidents that may be contrary to the standard procedure of the elections, with the corresponding date and time of the event. All documents and paraphernalia after the elections shall be placed in the Commission on Elections Office for safekeeping. ELECTION OFFENSES The following shall be guilty of an election offense: a. Vote buying and selling - Any student, candidate, club, and organization who gives, offers or promises anything for value, directly or indirectly, any expenditure to be made to any student, candidate, club, or organization in order to induce anyone or the public in general to 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 Commission on Elections members) who coerces or intimidates or compels, or in any manner influence, directly or indirectly, campaign for vote or against any candidate and party for the nomination or selection of candidates. c. Appearance in Office - the Leave of Absence (LOA) strictly means to be out of office for the mean time until elections. The LOA contains the name of the person that is in charge of the task/s and responsibilities to be carried. d. Unlawful Circulation - Election campaign paraphernalias which are subject for approval from the commission but were already circulated 14 | P a g e

Section 2

ARTICLE 13

Section 1

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ARTICLE 14 Section 1

prior to the needed approval. The Commission has the authority to confiscate or remove the election paraphernalia if found violated this section. e. Unlawful Campaign on Election Day/s - It is unlawful to undertake any propaganda on the day of election, for or against any candidate or any political party within the polling precinct. f. Unlawful Campaign Personnel - The following are prohibited to endorse and campaign for any candidate or political party: 1. Commission on Elections Commissioner, Associate Commissioners Moderator, Volunteer and authorized Election Officer 2. Incumbent officers who will use the name of their office 3. 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 and Janitors. g. Outside School Campaign - The elections is only limited to the Ateneo Jacinto Campus. However, in the terms of Internet Campaign, it should be only limited to the bona fide Students of the Ateneo de Davao University under the Tertiary Unit of the University (School of Arts and Sciences, College of Engineering and Architecture, School of Business and Governance and College of Nursing). h. Other prohibitions on candidacy and campaign: 1. Any candidate or political party that holds political meetings earlier than the period fixed in this Guidelines. 2. Any person who abstracts, destroy or cancels any Certificate of Candidacy duly filed and which has not been cancelled upon order of the Commission. 3. Any person who misleads the Commission by submitting any false or spurious reports to the prejudice of a candidate or political 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 shall be sanctioned by the following: a. Posting of ELECTION OFFENSE/S committed by the candidate or political party to the public, Commission on Elections Bulletin Board, candidates Stilt Board and in the polling precinct/s. 15 | P a g e

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 meet this section will mean the Commissions right to enforce its authority to do the confiscation of campaign materials. Section 3 The investigations and prosecution of cases involving violations of the election laws shall be given preference and priority by the Commission on Elections and involved candidate/s or party/ies.

D. INTERNAL CONDITIONS and FINAL PROVISION

Section 1 Section 2

No complaint must come from the Commission on Elections Body. No action must be taken by the Commission on Election, as a whole, unless 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 verbal warning to the candidate, and must gather enough evidences to support such claim. Nonetheless, the Commissioner is highly mandated by the constitution to be neutral at all times, and avoid biases in promulgating these guidelines of election. In addition, the commissioner is encouraged to stimulate witnesses to file a complaint for such violation. Furthermore, it should be immediately reported to the whole commission, and be given a thorough deliberation. No one is allowed to interpret the Guidelines except the Commission on Elections. Separability clause - If any section or provision of this Act is held unconstitutional or invalid, any other section or provision not affected thereby shall remain valid and effective. Jurisdiction of the Commission - The Commission shall have exclusive jurisdiction of all proclamation and be the sole judge of all contests relating to the elections, returns, and qualifications of candidates and political parties. It may motu proprio or upon written petition, and after due notice and hearing, order the sanction to any candidate or political party, if one has been made, as evidence shall warrant in accordance with the succeeding elections. Furthermore, if there are incidents that arise, and it is not written in this GENERAL ELECTORAL CODE, on how to resolve unprecedented issues, then, the Commission on Elections, as an electoral body, will be given the authority, as vested in the constitution, to set the rules in the matter of election, immediately.

Section 3

Section 4

Section 5

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Revised by:

Catherine Joy Mata Chief, Legal Division

Esther Salvie Tupas Deputy, Legal Division

Jason T. Occidental Chairperson Recommending Approval:

Almira Jane Villegas Secretary General

April Ledesma Chief, Human Resource Division

Jenny Mae Saldaa Chief, Finance Division

Clemarie M. Secuya Chief, Technical Division

Jett Aeizl Pogoy Chief, Events Division

Albert Mardione Mozo Chief, Logistics Division

Adrian Ablazo Chief, Promotions Division

Marian Miciano Deputy, Human Resource Division

Ria Maghuyop Deputy, Promotions Division

Alexene Joyce Monterde Deputy, Events Division

Clarence Daniel Cawad Deputy, Finance Division Noted by:

Arielle Sta. Ana Deputy Secretary General

Atty. Pilariza Racho-Baldovino Moderator 18 | P a g e

ANNEX

CALENDAR OF ACTIVITIES Discernment Program & Deadline of COC February 2, 1:00PM5:00PM, 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, 4:00PM5:30PM,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

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