No Private Armed Groups In Cebu Poll Exec

An official of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) have not yet identified private armed groups in Cebu.

Cebu Provincial Election Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano said the PNP and the AFP are monitoring and verifying criminal elements like guns-for-hire that may possibly form as armed groups before the election.

Castillano said the Regional Joint Security Control Center, composed of the Comelec, PNP and AFP, held their first meeting at the Police Regional Office 7 last Monday to discuss the security plan for the coming elections.

“The PNP and AFP are looking at the criminal elements because there might be a possibility that they will form into private armed groups and will be used during the election. They would like to neutralize these criminal elements so that during election there will be no presence of private armed group,” Castillano said.

Castillano said that in the previous elections, the Comelec noticed that armed men from other provinces usually come to Cebu three days or one week before the election.

Castillano said the PNP and AFP are trying to prevent this from happening again.

He said the PNP, AFP and Comelec will also hold a peace covenant signing for areas where there is intense political rivalry.

“Sometimes, rivalry between politicians intensified because there are doubts as to neutrality of the Comelec, PNP and AFP. We want also to show them that we are impartial,” Castillano said. (PNA) RMA/EB/EDS