Policemen who will be deployed to secure the special elections in 12 barangays in Lanao del Sur will be using body-worn cameras.
Police Maj. Gen. Valeriano De Leon, director of the Philippine National Police Directorate for Operations and deputy commander of the Special Task Force National Elections 2022, said the move is to ensure that all operations and responses for the conduct of peaceful and credible polls are well-documented.
"The use of body-worn cameras would be greatly useful not only for transparency on the part of PNP personnel but also in any legal offensive against those who would dare to sabotage or influence the results of the special polls. I have given orders to use them to ensure transparency, adequate monitoring, and documentation," said De Leon
"All accessible body-worn cameras in the surrounding regions will be deployed to the area so that even higher level commanders will be able to monitor those being used by our personnel on the ground through a real-time video feed," he added.
The Commission on Elections is planning to hold special elections on May 24 in 12 barangays in the municipality of Tubaran. On May 9, local Comelec officials declared the elections in these areas a failure due to security concerns.
Police officers designated as Special Board of Inspectors (SBEIs), policemen who secure the perimeters of precincts, and policemen who conduct operations and responses against vote-buying and flying voters are among those expected to wear body-worn cameras.
Last year, the PNP purchased over 3,000 body-worn cameras, which were later distributed to police units, especially in urban areas, in an effort to ensure openness and accountability amid charges of human rights violations in the drug war's operations.
Congress provided the funding for the purchase of body-worn cameras.