Electioneering
REGARDLESS of employment status, government officials and employees are prohibited from engaging in partisan political activities during elections.
And in this Southeast Asian nation , the Filipino electorate goes to the polls every three years to elect new national and local government officials.
We, thus, commend the government for reminding the country’s public servants to stay away from partisan political activities during an election.
Election, which is democracy in action, enables the people, through the electorate, to rid the bureaucracy of erring elected government officials.
In a joint circular, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Civil Service Commission (CSC) told public servants to remain neutral during the elections.
Under the circular, government personnel are not even allowed to wear poll campaign-related materials without the approval of the poll body.
They include t-shirts, pins, caps and other accessories.
The almost two million government personnel would do well not to engage partisan political activities during the polls.
If found guilty of electioneering, a government personnel is suspended for one month and one day to six months for the first offenser.
For the second offense, he or she faces dismissal from the service and banned from ever occupying any government position.
