ARMED Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and Philippine National Police (PNP) officials will sit down with the Commission of Elections (Comelec) this week to discuss the lifting of a ban on their direct participation in election activities.

AFP spokesperson Lt. Col. Romeo Brawner Jr. yesterday said the top brass would sit down with election officials on Thursday to iron out the mechanics of a new deal that would again allow the uniformed services an expanded role in Philippine elections.

According to acting Defense Secretary Norberto Gonzales, who has been pushing for the deal, it involves allowing the military and police to provide security for candidates and play other ?key roles,? particularly in election ?hotspots.?

The new agreement between the Department of National Defense (DND) and the Comelec would replace a 2006 accord which limited the involvement of the military in the country?s electoral process to merely providing security to an area and enforcing the season?s gun ban.

The old agreement, signed after the ?Hello Garci? scandal implicated several AFP officers in suspected cheating in the 2004 presidential poll, banned soldiers from acting as security escorts of candidates, participating in the canvassing of votes, and transporting ballot boxes, among other things.

Brawner said there was still a need to study the proposed system. ?We will seriously consider this to make sure that majority of our force will not just serve as bodyguards of candidates,? he said.

Gonzales defended a new DND-Comelec agreement, saying the military will play a key role in the upcoming balloting only in identified election ?hotspots.?

Gonzales said the previous decision to limit the role of the military in elections in light of the ?Hello Garci? scandal ?strengthened rather than erased doubts? on the integrity and the impartiality of the military.

?We want to correct that,? he said in a statement sent to reporters yesterday.

Come out clean, loved

?Our armed forces will come out clean and more loved and respected by our people because of the role they will play in the 2010 elections, just as they have been doing so in Maguindanao,? added Gonzales.

The military took control of Maguindanao for a week when President Macapagal-Arroyo declared martial law in the province to quell mounting unrest among supporters of the powerful Ampatuan clan, who are accused of killing 57 people, including the wife and several relatives of their key electoral rival, on Nov. 23.

Gonzales claimed no human rights violations by government troops were recorded during the weeklong martial rule, which was lifted on Dec. 12.

Reiterating full confidence in the professionalism of the military, Gonzales expressed full support for giving soldiers an expanded role in this year?s presidential election.

The new contract, he noted, would put the AFP at the full disposal of the Comelec ?because we want the poll body to accomplish its job.?

No details yet

He also said the Comelec had always employed the AFP in the previous elections, especially in ?hotspots.?

But he added: ?The new memorandum of agreement has yet to be drafted. There are no details yet.?

Earlier, AFP Chief of Staff Gen. Victor Ibrado said soldiers ?would not go anywhere near the ballots.?

Ibrado, however, is expected to retire in March and be replaced by Army chief Lt. Gen. Delfin Bangit, reputed to be close to President Arroyo.

In a statement a few days ago, Bangit stressed it was among the New Year resolutions of the Army to redeem its reputation and ?work for a credible election in May.? He vowed the Army ?will not participate in any partisan politics? and would only follow ?legal orders? of the Comelec.

But some critics are still wary of the idea of assigning soldiers to carry out election duties. The ?Hello, Garci? wiretapping scandal, which has yet to be fully investigated, suggested that military officers helped Ms Arroyo win the elections. Ms Arroyo denied the charge but had publicly apologized for personally calling an election Commissioner before the counting was over.