KORONADAL CITY (MindaNews / 05 May) – Police have beefed up security in six municipalities in South Cotabato province that are considered “areas of concern” or potential hotspots in line with Monday’s local and national elections.
Capt. Renjun Bagaman, public information officer of the South Cotabato Police Provincial Office, said they deployed additional personnel starting Thursday to secure and ensure the conduct of “safe and fair” elections in these areas.
He said Banga town was placed under the red category or “areas of grave concern” due to the recorded election-related incidents in the previous polls.
The municipality, through recommendations from the Philippine National Police and the Armed Forces of the Philippines, was declared a possible hotspot by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) as early as the 2007 elections due to the reported presence of armed groups.
Bagaman said Comelec has also placed five other municipalities – Tupi, Tampakan, Polomolok, Lake Sebu, and Tboli – under the orange category or “areas of immediate concern.”
“These are mainly slight threats. Our public safety forces are already deployed to secure these areas,” he said in a media forum.
He said this city and the municipalities of Tantangan, Surallah, Norala, and Sto. Nino are under the green category or areas with no security concern while none were placed under the yellow category.
Comelec identified those under the yellow category as areas with a history of election-related violence or existence of political rivalry, orange as areas with serious armed threats by terrorist groups or other armed groups, and red as areas with a political climate warranting the declaration of Comelec control.
Since the start of the election period last Jan. 9, Bagaman said they have not recorded any case of election-related incidents or violence within the province.
He said the killing of Barangay Veterans, Surallah councilor and former barangay chairman Eugene Lastrella in Barangay Sinolon, Tboli town last April 27 was considered isolated and not related to the upcoming elections.
Bagaman said around 800 police personnel or 75 percent of their current strength have been assigned to various poll duties in the province’s 10 towns and lone city.
This includes securing polling centers and precincts in the 199 barangays, and assisting the transport of Vote Counting Machines or VCMs and other election materials.
He said the Police Regional Office (PRO)-12 has also deployed additional police personnel that will serve as reserve or standby force.
On Wednesday, PRO-12 held the ceremonial sendoff of some 939 augmentation personnel for poll duties, with 326 assigned as reserve contingent, 302 as quick response force, 123 for the Comelec checkpoints, and 188 to the polling centers.
A total of 975,541 residents of South Cotabato, including General Santos City, are eligible to vote in Monday’s polls. (Allen V. Estabillo/MindaNews)
