MANILA, Philippines – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) plans to activate soon an interagency task force that promises to be more proactive in combating vote-buying during the ongoing campaign season, a poll official said on Friday, March 25.

The move comes in connection with rampant vote-buying on the ground, and growing backlash over the poll body’s alleged inaction on the issue.

Comelec Commissioner George Garcia said Task Force Kontra Bigay will be composed of the Department of Justice, the Presidential Anti-Corruption Commission, the Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Philippine Information Agency, the National Bureau of Investigation, the Philippine National Police, and the Armed Forces of the Philippines.

“Because of this broad coordinative efforts, immediate actions motu proprio or based on formal complaints involving vote buying are expected,” Garcia said. “As we have said before, our commitment in eliminating this irregularity is unparalleled.”

Garcia on Wednesday, March 30, added that Commissioner Aimee Ferolino will head the interagency task force, which is reportedly still being finalized.

Detained Senator Leila de Lima previously asserted that the Comelec should exercise its motu proprio powers, meaning act without a formal request, to investigate, and prosecute election law violations.

On March 16, the Comelec said it will wait for someone to write to the poll body about the alleged vote-buying incident at a campaign sortie for presidential aspirant Ferdinand Marcos Jr. in Nueva Ecija, before making a move.

The controversy stemmed from the distribution of white envelopes containing P500 bills to participants of a campaign rally for Marcos Jr. and running mate Davao City Mayor Sara Duterte-Carpio at Santa Rosa town on March 15.

Nueva Ecija Governor Aurelio Umali said it was an ayuda (financial aid) distribution that had long been scheduled and could not be canceled just because the dictator’s son was visiting.

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Under the Omnibus Election Code, vote-buying is an election offense, which is punishable by imprisonment of one to six years, disqualification from public office, and deprivation of right of suffrage.

Before promising “immediate actions motu proprio” on Friday, the Comelec’s line had been consistent on issues of vote-buying: telling the public to file a formal complaint with the poll body, and asking them to pursue the case to the end.

Incident reports can be submitted to sumbongko@votesafe.ph, which is Comelec’s dedicated email for potential election offenses. – Rappler.com