PROVIDING A NEW SECTION TO BE INSERTED BETWEEN SECTIONS 6 AND 7 TO BE KNOWN AS "SECTION 6-A" OF THE 1978 ELECTION CODE AND AMENDING SECTION 98 THEREOF FOR THE PURPOSE OF ENSURING THAT THE PARTICIPATION OF VOTERS ILLEGALLY REGISTERED SHALL NOT PERVERT THE TRUE RESULTS OF THE ELECTION.

• Number: Presidential Decree No. 1668
• Sections: 4

Preamble

WHEREAS, the holding of clean and honest elections depends in large measure on the integrity of the lists of voters;

WHEREAS, the Commission on Elections has reported

grave violations of the registration law, to such extent that unless the

Commission is empowered to take drastic measures immediately to correct

these irregularities, the exercise of suffrage may not serve its

purpose; and

WHEREAS, large scale irregularities in the registration of voters may not be effectively corrected through exclusion proceedings;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E. MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby order and decree:

Section 1 Postponement or suspension of election.

SECTION 1. Postponement or suspension of election.

— A new section to be known as "Section 6-A" shall be inserted between

Sections 6 and 7 of the 1978 Election Code and shall read as follows:

"Sec. 6-A. Postponement or suspension of election. —

Whenever the Commission finds that rampant irregularities have been

committed in the preparation of the book of voters through fraud,

bribery, forgery, impersonation, intimidation, force or any other

similar irregularity resulting in a large increase in the number of

registered voters in said voting center which is statistically

improbable, and as a consequence thereof, the holding of a free, orderly

and honest election shall become impossible in said voting center, the

Commission may, after summary verification, order the postponement or

suspension of the election in said voting center until such time as it

may deem necessary to enable it to make proper recourse to purge

spurious or illegally registered voters from the list of voters."

Section 2

SEC. 2. Section 98 of the 1978 Election Code is hereby amended to read as follows:

"Sec. 98. Annulment of permanent list of voters. —

Any book of voters not prepared in accordance with the provisions of

this Code or the preparation of which has been effected with fraud,

bribery, forgery, impersonation, intimidation, force, or any other

similar irregularity may, MOTU PROPIO or upon verified petition of any

voter or election registrar, or duly registered or ACCREDITED political

party, group or aggrupation, be annulled THROUGH SUMMARY PROCEEDINGS, by

the Commission."

Section 3 Effectivity.

SEC. 3. Effectivity. — This Decree shall take effect immediately.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 26th day of January, in the year of Our Lord,

nineteen hundred and eighty.

(Sgd.) FERDINAND E. MARCOS

President of the Philippines

By the President:

(Sgd.) JOAQUIN T. VENUS, JR.

Presidential Staff Director