Although there were election-related incidents (ERIs) recorded in Mindanao, the conduct of the Baranggay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) on Monday, Oct. 30, went "generally peaceful", the Philippine National Police (PNP) said.
A final tally of ERIs recorded from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. or during the voting hours showed that the PNP monitored a total of 10 violent incidents nationwide.
These included two mauling incidents in Zamboanga Peninsula (Region 9); two cases of physical injuries in Northern Mindanao (Region 10); and one case each of malicious mischief, harrassment of security personnel, hacking, illegal campaigning, light threat, and vote buying/vote selling. These were noted in Soccsksargen (Region 12), Calabarzon (Region 4A), Bicol (Region 5), and National Capital Region (NCR).
"The conduct of the 2023 Baranggay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections nationwide is generally peaceful as there were no major incidents recorded so far that compromised the integrity of the elections," Police Brig. Gen. Chito Bersaluna, deputy director of PNP Directorate for Operations, said in a press briefing at Camp Crame in Quezon City.
However, there were a total of six shooting incidents that occurred in the Bangsamoro region as early as 6 a.m. and these were not included in the tally presented by the PNP.
The shooting incidents resulted in the death of five persons and wounding of 11 others, said Police Brig. Gen. Allan Nobleza, regional director of Police Regional Office in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (PRO-BARMM).
Three of the six recorded shooting incidents were deadly and they occurred near polling precincts in Datu Odin Sinsuat, Maguindanao del Norte where two persons died; in Butig, Lanao del Sur where one perished; and in Bacolod, Lanao del Norte where two individuals were killed.
"I would like to report that despite all these things, the shooting incidents that were reported, nandoon naman ang ating kapulisan (our police force is there). They were able to respond accordingly and appropriately," PNP chief Police Gen. Benjamin Acorda Jr. said.
"Wala pang nagdeclare na areas na may failure of election (No area yet has declared a failure of election)," he added.
As of 5:15 p.m., Acorda said that 83.8 percent of the total 201,793 clustered precincts nationwide have closed their voting at exactly 3 p.m. while 67.2 percent have already started the counting of votes.
The PNP chief shared that some clustered precincts extended the voting hours due to delays in the delivery of election paraphernalia.
There were also reports about power interruptions in Oriental Mindoro, missing voter’s name in the list of registered voters, temporary suspension of voting process due to the forced entry of armed men and destruction of ballots in a polling precinct in Puerto Princesa City, Palawan; and withdrawal of teachers who were supposed to serve as members of the electoral board in Lanao del Sur, Maguindanao del Sur, Abra, and Kalinga.
At present, Acorda said there were 35 validated and 191 unvalidated election-related incidents nationwide.
He further stated that the "successful" conduct of the BSKE has "epitomized the essence of democracy" in the country which reflected a "harmonious, organized, and united endeavor."
"In conclusion, the 2023 BSKE exemplify our democracy's resilience. The success of BSKE is a tribute to the unified strength of government agencies and the unwavering dedication of our citizens," Acorda stressed.