MANILA, Philippines — Some 600 police officers will be on standby for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) on October 30, should some teachers in the area opt not to report for election duties, the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said on Wednesday.
Comelec Chairman George Garcia said the Commission is gearing up in case some teachers choose not to perform their election duties out of fear and assured that the Philippine National Police (PNP) personnel are trained and Department of Science and Technology-certified.
“Sa area ng Bangsamoro naghahanda po tayo dyan ng 600 na mga PNP personnel na tinetrain sapagkat katulad nung nangyari noong 2022 sa Cotabato City hindi po naglingkod ang mga electoral members,” Garcia said in a press conference.
(In the Bangsamoro area, we are readying about 600 PNP personnel to prepare for something like what happened in Cotabato City in 2022.)
Earlier, the PNP reported that the number of barangays it recommended to be placed under the “red category” or areas of grave concern has climbed from 246 to 357.
Seventy percent of the areas are in the BARMM.
Earlier, Comelec said a total of 400,000 trained police officers are on standby nationwide for areas where teachers will not be available on election day.
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