PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo (PNA photo by Christopher Lloyd Caliwan)
MANILA – The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Monday said 70 percent of 357 "areas of grave concern" for the Oct. 30 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) are mostly from Bangsamoro Autonomous Region (BARMM) in Muslim Mindanao.
In a press briefing in Camp Crame, PNP spokesperson Col. Jean Fajardo said 249 areas in BARMM belong to the red category of the election hot spot list, higher than the 147 reported on Sept. 20 by the Commission on Elections (Comelec).
Places under the red category are considered to be on the watchlist and need to be carefully monitored because there’s a threat.
Under the color-coding scheme, code green would mean generally peaceful and orderly and no cause for concern; while yellow if the area has a history of election-related incidents in the last polls and had been previously declared under the control of the Comelec. Code orange, meanwhile, means areas of immediate concern where there is a serious armed threat.
Fajardo said 1,323 villages are under the orange category while 1,231 are under the yellow category.
She said the PNP and the military would convene the National Joint Security Control Center (JSCC) soon to reconcile their records regarding the election hot spot list.
The JNSCC, she said, would then submit its recommendation on the hot spot list to the Comelec en banc for final approval.
Fajardo, meanwhile, said only eight out of a total of 71 incidents reported to the PNP have been validated as election-related incidents (ERIs).
Another 18 are under investigation while the rest were confirmed as non-ERIs, she added.
Fajardo also said that as of Sunday, there were 912 firearms confiscated at checkpoints while 1,208 persons were arrested since the start of the election gun ban on Aug. 28.
She said they have also deposited 1,692 firearms for safekeeping while 731 firearms with expired licenses have been surrendered to the PNP.
The election period for the BSKE started on Aug. 28 and will end on Nov. 29.
During this period, the Comelec mandates the suspension of activities involving the carrying of firearms or other deadly weapons and the employment of security personnel or bodyguards by incumbent public officials, whether elected or appointed, as well as private individuals. (PNA)
