Map poll security plans, cops told

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine National Police chief Gen. Guillermo Eleazar has ordered all unit commanders to start mapping out election security plans in their respective areas of responsibility as intense political rivalries are expected to heat up at the local level after the period of filing of candidacy ends on Friday, October 8.

“Now that we are getting a clearer picture of who will be competing, especially in local elective posts, we are expecting political rivalries to intensify, which can lead to election violence. I am tasking all unit commanders to start preparing as early as today to prevent violence from happening in their areas of responsibility,” Eleazar said on Thursday.

PNP data revealed that almost all the election-related violence in the past stemmed from intense political rivalries of candidates vying for local posts, including clashes among the supporters.

During the midterm elections in 2019, the Commission on Elections declared 946 election hot spots, including the entire Mindanao region.

Decrease in cases in 2019

The number of election-related violent incidents during the 2019 midterm elections dropped by 55 percent as compared to figures from 2016, according to the PNP.

During the election season from January to June 2019, 60 violent incidents were recorded, lower than the 133 incidents over the same period in the 2016 polls.

Of the 113 victims of election-related violent incidents in 2019, 23 were killed, down from the 50 reported killed during the 2016 presidential elections.

Nonetheless, Eleazar said the PNP is still reviewing and assessing the areas with a history of election-related violence.

“I also ordered our Intelligence Group to start the monitoring and background check on all the candidates who have the history, the potential and the means to sow violence as part of our aggressive efforts to ensure honest and peaceful elections next year,” he added.

Heightened operations

As part of securing the upcoming elections, the PNP earlier heightened its operations against private armed groups and syndicates involved in the proliferation of loose firearms.

Eleazar said he was satisfied with the election security measures put in place by police units across the country, including at Sofitel Philippine Plaza in Pasay City where candidates vying for national posts are filing their COCs and certificates of nomination and acceptance (CONAs) until Friday.

He reiterated his call to all political candidates to discourage their supporters from accompanying them or gathering outside the Comelec offices and other venues to avoid creating superspreader events.

According to Eleazar, the PNP was already anticipating the influx of candidates who would file their COCs and CONAs to beat the October 8 deadline and ordered all police commanders to place on standby enough personnel to be tapped for maintaining peace and order in the venues.