MANILA, Philippines – With the 2025 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) on the horizon, the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) signaled its readiness to move forward with preparations, following a three-day risk management training and workshop held from July 16 to 18 at The Heritage Hotel in Pasay City.
The intensive workshop, organized by the BSKE Project Management Office (PMO), brought together key COMELEC personnel from various departments and working committees to enhance their capacity to anticipate, assess, and respond to potential disruptions surrounding the 2025 polls.
COMELEC Commissioner Rey E. Bulay, Commissioner-in-Charge for the 2025 BSKE, formally opened the event and underscored the urgency of planning—even as talks of a potential postponement continue to circulate.
“COMELEC must be prepared for any eventuality,” Bulay said. “This training is vital regardless of whether the elections push through or not.”
Chairman George Erwin M. Garcia reinforced the agency’s commitment to full-scale readiness: “Lahat ng ginagawa natin ay parte ng paghahanda sa major event. Kung handa ka, matuloy man ang eleksyon [o hindi], wala tayong problema.”
Day one of the workshop featured a comprehensive discussion on Resolution No. 10924—the codified rules for the 2025 BSKE—and a review of the revised electoral timeline. Subsequent sessions tackled risk scenarios such as disinformation campaigns, security threats, logistical bottlenecks, and natural calamities. Experts from the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) and the Nutrition Research Institute (NRI) also guided participants through technical frameworks on risk prevention and response.
The training reflects COMELEC’s push for institutional resilience, transparency, and accountability, indicating that the 2025 BSKE is more likely to proceed on schedule.
July 16–18, 2025
COMELEC Education and Information Department