More policemen and soldiers will be deployed in areas which will be assessed to be sites for potential poll-related violence for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections on Oct. 30, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.

So far, around 246 areas were already classified as under red category but PNP chief information officer Col. Jean Fajardo said the list will still be discussed in a meeting with the Commission on Elections (Comelec).

Most of those in the list they submitted, according to Fajardo, are in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) while there are also some areas in the Visayas and Luzon.

“The PNP and the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines) are considering the deployment of additional personnel from the PNP, AFP and even the PCG (Philippine Coast Guard to areas which will be included in the list of red, orange and yellow categories,” said Fajardo.

Part of the deployment, according to Fajardo, are policemen who would serve as members of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs), adding that they have already trained several policemen on BEI roles.

In the past elections, policemen served as BEIs in some areas due to serious security threats.

Those who are trained to act as BEIs will be placed on standby for emergency purposes.

“Even if the policemen are assigned in regions with no security concerns, they can still be deployed in areas where special BEIs from our rank would be needed,” said Fajardo.

Currently, Fajardo said they are continuously monitoring the security situations across the country as part of the election security preparations in coordination with the Comelec, AFP and the PCG.