CEBU CITY – Law enforcers in Central Visayas are 100 percent ready to secure the barangay elections on Monday, October 30.
Thousands of personnel from the Police Regional Office-Central Visayas (PRO-7), Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), and Philippine Navy attended the simultaneous multi-agency send-off and turnover of security forces and resources on Monday, October 23, at the South Road Properties here.
SECURITY personnel attend the simultaneous multi-agency send-off and turnover of security forces and resources for the barangay elections on Monday, October 23, at the South Road Properties in Cebu City. (Calvin D. Cordova)
These security forces composed of 1,790 personnel from the PRO-7, 101 from the BFP, 60 from the PCG, and 112 from the AFP were formally turned over to the Commission on Election-Central Visayas (Comelec-7).
The National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) has 13 personnel who will be on hand when the need arises during the election.
Police Brig. Gen. Anthony Aberin, chief of PRO-7, reminded his men to maintain professionalism and neutrality to ensure a peaceful, safe, fair, and honest election in the region.
“What is our mission? Of course, our mission is to keep the peace. Our mission is to maintain peace and order in our area of deployment. So, I remind you to let us remain professional and non-partisan at all times and meticulously ensure that all essential preparations are implemented flawlessly,” Aberin said.
K9 units from the Special Weapons and Tactics will be deployed in major ports and terminals to prevent the smuggling of contraband during the election.
Comelec-7 Director Lionel Marco Castillano reminded security forces that teachers and the voters must be safeguarded.
"During Election Day, secure our electoral board and the election paraphernalia. The safety of our teachers must be prioritized because without them, we won’t have an election. Second is to secure our voters. A successful election entails that the voters can vote. That’s the most important,” said Castillano.
There are 24 areas of concern in Central Visayas and 18 were declared under areas of immediate concern.
The PCG will have two vessels on standby and BFP personnel will also be on alert should their services be needed.
The NGCP assured that there will be no power outage on the day of the election. It said that it has a contingency plan from October 28 to November 2 to make sure that there will be no power interruptions in those dates.