• GILBERT P. BAYORAN
Voter turnout in Negros Island Region (NIR) during the May 12 elections reached 84.32 percent, surpassing the national turnout of 82.2 percent, Commission on Elections (Comelec)-NIR Regional Director Lionel Marco Castillano said.
Castillano described it as record-breaking for the midterm elections.
“It shows that the recently concluded elections in NIR was successful, despite the election day shooting incident in Silay City,” he said, during the post-election assessment of the Regional Joint Security Coordinating Center held at Camp Alfredo M. Montelibano Sr. in Bacolod City on June 18.
Despite the incident, it did not stop voters to cast their votes in their respective polling precincts, he added.
Police have filed murder and frustrated murder complaints against a barangay captain and three others in connection with the shooting incident in Barangay Mambulac, Silay City, which claimed the lives of two people and injured seven others.
The three other suspects were already identified, but the police withheld their identities, pending the issuance of arrest warrants against them.
Since it was considered by the police as an election violent incident, Castillano said it will have an effect in the next barangay election in Silay City, which is expected to be placed under a yellow category or with history of election-related incident.
Castillano also reported that 122 of the 1,557 candidates in NIR failed to file their Statement of Contributions and Expenditures (SOCE).
The filing of SOCE ended June 11, with no extension, according to the Comelec.
Castillano reported during the press briefing that 1,445, or 92.81 percent, of the candidates filed their SOCEs, of which 703 are in Negros Occidental, 589 in Negros Oriental, and 153 in Siquijor. | GB
