Thursday, April 12, 2007 Candidates’ peace pact being drafted
THE Cebu Provincial Police Office (CPPO) and election officials in the region plan to meet with local candidates to ask them to sign a covenant for a peaceful May 14 elections.
CPPO Director Carmelo Valmoria said they will invite not only those running from the towns that are identified as possible areas of election concern, but all local candidates in the province.
The Police Regional Office (PRO) 7 earlier declared the whole island of Bantayan in Cebu as an election area of concern. It said it would also closely monitor the municipalities of Daanbantayan in the north and Santander in the south.
Valmoria said they came up with the plan to ask the candidates to sign a peace covenant during his meeting with Commission on Elections (Comelec) Regional Director Rene Buac last Tuesday afternoon.
The police and the Comelec 7, however, are still finalizing the date of the meeting.
To make the signing easier, Valmoria said the invitation will be made through the political parties of the candidates.
Meanwhile, Valmoria said the CPPO and the 78th Infantry Battalion headed by Lt. Col. Raymundo Bañares are initiating measures to address the reported sightings of rebels in the mid-north towns of Tabuelan, Tuburan and Borbon.
Valmoria said they received the information before the Holy Week celebration and immediately coordinated with Bañares’ group.
Based on their assessment, only one group was sighted but the numbers vary.
Valmoria said he is grateful to the community and the Barangay Intelligence Network for helping the police and the military operation.
He said it cannot be discounted that the rebels may be in the area to extort from candidates.
So far, though, Valmoria said the CPPO has not received any complaint from candidates against the rebels’ extortion activities.
The PRO 7 has been appealing to candidates not to give in to this. (JST)
