The Commission on Elections (Comelec) Monday prohibited the act of betting on the results of the May 10 polls as stipulated under the Omnibus Election Code.

“To those who like betting, do not bet on any candidate because you will be penalized if proven guilty,” Comelec Commissioner Rene Sarmiento said, adding that betting is not limited on money but could also be in kind or anything with value.

The Comelec official noted the fondness of Filipinos to bet on many things such as in basketball games, cockfights, dog fights, horse races, and even spider matches.

Article 22 Section 261 of the Omnibus Election code prohibits the following that is considered an election offense: “Wagering upon result of election. - Any person who bets or wagers upon the outcome of, or any contingency connected with an election. Any money or thing of value or deposit of money or thing of value situated anywhere in the Philippines put as such bet or wager shall be forfeited to the government.”

The Omnibus Election Code also cites the penalty for the offense: “Any person found guilty of any election offense under this Code shall be punished with imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than six years and shall not be subject to probation. In addition, the guilty party shall be sentenced to suffer disqualification to hold public office and deprivation of the right of suffrage. If he is a foreigner, he shall be sentenced to deportation which shall be enforced after the prison term has been served.”

Sarmiento added that the government will confiscate the money or object that has been put up for the bet, saying that reports and complaints should be filed before the Comelec as due process should be followed in penalizing an offender.