Over 7,500 police officers to vote on Tuesday

PNP Headquarters in Camp Crame, Quezon City (Photo from the PNP Facebook page)

MANILA, Philippines — Over 7,500 police officers are set to cast their votes in local absentee voting on Tuesday for this year’s polls, data from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) showed.

According to Comelec, 8,975 police officers have applied for the local absentee voting but only 7,576 were allowed to participate.

Of the police officers set to vote today, 148 are from Camp Crame in Quezon City. The PNP has a 190,000-strong force.

Local absentee voting started on Monday and is allowed until Wednesday, but police officers may only vote on Tuesday in designated PNP offices, said PNP spokesperson Colonel Bernard Banac.

READ: Local absentee voting for May 13 polls starts

He said other officers who did not register for local absentee voting may vote on May 13 before they start their duty.

“No firearms [are] allowed inside polling precincts,” Banac said in a text message.

In an interview with INQUIRER.net, Patrolwoman Alona Faith Edas said she chose to participate in the local absentee voting since she will be on duty on May 13 and will not be able to go to her hometown in Kalinga province.

Edas is assigned at the Police Community Affairs and Development Group.

“We have to avail this local absentee voting to exercise our right to suffrage kasi kahit din po kapulisan, may boses din po tayo para sa mga ilalagay na leader ng ating bansa,” she said moments after casting her vote at Camp Crame.

(We have to avail this local absentee voting to exercise our right to suffrage because even police officers have the voice in choosing the leaders of our country.) /cbb