By Martin Sadongdong
Security preparations have been ironed out for the elections at Barangay Pag-asa, Kalayaan Island Group in Palawan, the country's most remote village in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), the Philippine National Police (PNP) disclosed Friday.
(PNP / MANILA BULLETIN)
"It's green and go nationwide as far as police election security operations is concerned," said Police Lt. Gen. Archie Francisco Gamboa, PNP deputy chief for operations and commander of the PNP National Security Task Force for the 2019 elections.
Gamboa, along with other ranking officials of the PNP, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and Commission on Elections (Comelec) flew to Barangay Pag-asa on Thursday for the final testing and sealing of vote-counting machines (VCM) and voters’ registration and verification system (VRVS) ahead of Monday’s polls.
Comelec Commissioners Al Parreño, Antonio Kho and Louie Tito Guia witnessed the final testing and sealing of the election equipment, Gamboa said.
Pag-asa is the lone barangay in Kalayaan, a 5th-class municipality with more than 200 civilian residents.
On Monday, Pag-asa residents will elect the provincial governor, vice governor, provincial board members, district representative; and the town mayor, vice-mayor, and members of the municipal council, as well as senator and a partylist group.
Disputing the mayoral seat is independent candidate Roberto Del Mundo and PPP bet Rodrigo Jaca. #MatalinongBoto2019