Senator Imee Marcos emphasized on Wednesday the need to update the existing laws that allows the government to conduct an automated elections which, at times, results to controversies “making the electoral landscape unnecessarily contentious and contradictory.”

Convening the Senate Committee on Electoral Reforms, she announced that she filed Senate Bill No. (SBN) 179 that seeks to strengthen the Omnibus Election Code (OEC) of the Philippines and modernize the electoral system of the country.

She said revising and re-codifying the election laws will make future electoral exercises more transparent, fair, honest and credible.

”Regulations and limitations under the OEC have since been proven inadequate to realistically ensure a more level-playing field for candidates. Certain provisions of the OEC are outrightly ill-suited for modern times,” Marcos said in her explanatory note.

The lawmaker noted that the OEC, which is more than three decades old, should adapt to the advancements in technology.

“It is therefore apparent that a massive overhaul of election statutes is long overdue. Also obvious is the need to re-codify the now scattered election statutes and assemble them together into one coherent, unified and extensive law,” it added.

The committee discussed the preparations for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections scheduled in October this year.

It was also tasked by Marcos to form a technical working group to discuss deeper the OEC, SBN 179, and the various proposed measures referred to the committee. (PNA)

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