• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
A total of 2,827 Philippine Army soldiers stationed in Negros Island Region, Western Visayas, and Central Visayas have been tapped for election duties on May 12, according to the Armed Forces of the Philippines Visayas Command (Viscom).
These personnel will support the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and the Philippine National Police in ensuring a fair, orderly, and reliable electoral process, Viscom chief Lt. Gen. Fernando Reyeg said.
In his series of visits to the units in Negros and Panay, he encouraged the troops to remain professional and committed to their mandate in securing the elections.
“Let us remain professional, committed, non-partisan, and loyal to the Constitution. Let us foster an environment where our people can exercise their right to vote freely and without fear or intimidation. Our professionalism and dedication are pivotal to safeguarding the sanctity of this democratic process,” he added.
A total of 310 policemen from Bacolod City Police Office in Negros Occidental are also up for deployment to Negros Oriental three days before the election day.
All the 25 towns and cities in Negros Oriental have been tagged by the Comelec as areas of concerns, with Guihulngan City and La Libertad under the red category, while the 23 remaining local government units (LGUs) are under the yellow category.
In Negros Occidental, 31 LGUs, including the highly-urbanized Bacolod City, have been placed under the green category, or with no election security concerns, while Candoni was placed under orange category due to an insurgency related incident in November last year.
Siquijor was also placed under the green category. | GB
