30,000 cops to be deployed for May polls

Police Deputy Director General Ager P Ontog Jr, Deputy Chief PNP for Operation/ Commander National Task Force SAFE 2013 gives out guidance regarding the deployment of PNP personnel in the field especially in areas vulnerable to attacks of lawless elements in response to the call for Secure and Fair Election (SAFE 2013). PNP.GOV.PH PHOTO

MANILA, Philippines—Additional 30,000 police forces who will perform election duties are now ready for deployment, the Philippine National Police (PNP) said Friday.

Deputy Director General Ager Ontog Jr., PNP deputy chief for operations, said the additional police officers will be fanned out to different parts of the country as part of the tightened enforcement of security under PNP’s “Oplan Last Two Weeks.”

Most of them will be deployed to Metro Manila and Luzon where there is problem of election violence, Ontog said.

The PNP has named 15 provinces as hotspot areas, were the possibility for the occurrence of election-related violence is high. They are Abra, Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur, La Union, Cagayan, Pampanga, Nueva Ecija, Batangas, Cavite, Masbate, Samar, Misamis Occidental, Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur and Basilan.

He said the troops—18,000 of which are full pledged, and 12,000 new recruits— will be sent to their assigned areas, probably a week before the election day on May 13.

The PNP will raise its alert level when the distribution of PCOS machines and other election paraphernalia starts, Ontog said.

“As far as the PNP is concerned, halos nakalatag na po iyong ating security operations at siguro naman with our early preparations wala nang mangyaring kaguluhan,” Ontog said.