6 CSCs, USC set for midyear polls; UPCD polls delayed due to lack of candidates

by Miguel Buzon

Six college student councils (CSCs) and the University of the Philippines Manila University Student Council (UPM USC) are slated to hold their polls this midyear term. However, the UP College of Dentistry (UPCD) announced its intent to postpone its election after its college’s electoral board (CEB) found that “no student candidate is ready to run for office.”

The CSCs of Colleges of Nursing, Medicine, Public Health, Pharmacy, Allied Medical Professions, and Arts & Sciences and UPM USC are set to follow the election calendar laid out by the UPM University Electoral Board (UEB), which started last June 10 and will conclude on July 24.

The filing of candidacies started on June 10 and will end on June 21. The official list of candidates is expected to be released on June 24, and protests will be entertained on the same day until the following day.

The campaign period, convocations, and Miting de Avance are scheduled from June 25 until July 9, with the official casting of votes running from July 10 to 19.

Meanwhile, in a letter, UPCD-CEB head Mikhaela Angelique Marcaida informed the UEB today about their decision to move its election calendar to a later period following the evaluation of the current situation of the college and consultation with the incumbent Dentistry Student Council (DSC) and UPCD’s Student Relations Officer.

The UPCD hopes that the postponement of their polls would give time for the college to recruit and prepare aspiring candidates to complete the unfulfilled positions in DSC.

The abstention and 50%+1 threshold will still take effect in this year’s USC polls following the decision of UPM USC yesterday to retain these provisions in the University Election Code.

The canvassing and release of the results of the college and university polls are set on July 23, while the filing and resolution of protests are scheduled on July 21 to 23, and the proclamation of winners on July 24.