PNP assures coordination with Comelec in entering warehouses with VCMs

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police (PNP) vowed on Tuesday to coordinate with the Commission on Elections (Comelec) when entering warehouses containing vote-counting machines (VCM).

PNP spokesman Colonel Bernard Banac made this assurance after Comelec Commissioner Rowena Guanzon called out Brigadier General Israel Ephraim Dickson, director of the Police Regional Office in Cordillera, for entering a warehouse containing vote counting machines in Baguio City without permission from the Comelec.

READ: Cordillera police chief denies inspecting VCMs in Baguio City

“We take due notice of the announcement by the Comelec being the deputized agency in this election period. We will ensure that this will not happen again,” Banac said in a press briefing at Camp Crame.

According to Banac, Dickson only checked on police officers guarding the warehouse and not the VCMs or the warehouse itself during his visit to Baguio City on April 17.

“It so happened na during that time wala siyang makausap na supervisor of the warehouse (During that time, no supervisor of the warehouse was able to speak to him),” he said.

Banac also assured that the PNP will always abide with the policies being implemented by the Comelec.

“The PNP will look into this [and] determine if there will be repercussions, but so far as the incident is concerned, we will ensure that this will not happen again and there will be proper communication before even making such inspections of our troops sa mga facilities and warehouse of the Comelec,” he said. /muf