Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, October 22) – An additional 800 policemen will be deployed to the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) for the Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) on Oct. 30 to reinforce security in areas considered as poll hotspots.
The augmentation force is part of the 187,000-strong police contingent that will be on duty for the BSKEs, Philippine National Police spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said Sunday.
“‘Yung 300 diyan manggagaling sa National Capital Region (NCR) samantalang ‘yung remaining manggagaling sa malalapit na rehiyon gaya ng 10, 11 and 12, and of course yung ating SAF (Special Action Force) contingent,” Fajardo explained.
[Translation: 300 will come from the NCR while the remainder will come from nearby regions such as 10, 11, and 12, and of course from the SAF contingent.]
As of Oct. 20, a total of 361 villages nationwide are in the red category of PNP’s list of election hotspots. Around 70% of these areas are in BARMM, Fajardo said.
She cited “intense political rivalries” as one of the reasons for the deployment of additional police personnel to BARMM.
In preparation for the BSKEs, the PNP also trained a total of 4,429 police officers to serve as members of the board of election inspectors (BEIs) in case the teachers designated for the role back out due to security reasons.
The policemen designated as part of the BEI will not carry firearms inside precincts, Fajardo said.
A sendoff ceremony for policemen assigned to BSKEs duties is scheduled on Monday at Camp Crame.
Since the start of the election period on August 28 until October 19, Fajardo said the PNP has arrested 1,615 violators of the gun ban and seized 1,210 firearms.
The PNP has also confirmed 18 incidents of election-related violence nationwide as of October 20.
Fajardo said the PNP is also keeping tabs on four private armed groups in Regions 3 and 7 to ensure they will not exert undue influence during the BSKEs.
The PNP will declare full alert status three to four days before the BSKEs, although Fajardo said regional police chiefs can raise the alert earlier as needed.
The full alert status will continue until All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day, she added.
