THE 78th Infantry Battalion is set to make public a list of candidates in the Oct. 29 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections who are getting support from communists.
But 78th IB Commander Raymundo Bañares yesterday said during the command conference with different police chiefs and election officers that they not campaign against these candidates.
They will only inform the public and it is up to the people to vote for them or not.
Bañares did not yet reveal the names but he said the candidates are from barangays in the mid-north of Cebu.
Cebu Provincial Police Office Director Carmelo Valmoria also said they have identified some barangays that might be declared as areas of immediate concern.
However, they still have to consolidate and assess the peace and order reports of the chiefs of police and come up with a final list tomorrow.
Mid-north
Most these barangays are considered communist influenced and are in the mid-north area.
Meanwhile, apart from the three urban barangays identified by the Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) as areas to be monitored, other barangays in the city’s south district are also being considered for security monitoring during the synchronized elections.
CCPO Director Patrocinio Comen-dador said these barangays will be known once he receives reports from his intelligence officers he ordered to check on the areas. Comendador earlier identified Barangays Lahug, Gudalupe and Pasil as the top areas to be monitored.
So far, Comendador said, no barangays in Cebu City have been identified as areas of concerns or areas of immediate concern.
He said there will be a joint command conference between the police, military and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) 7 tomorrow at the Police Regional Office (PRO) 7.
On Thursday, Comendador said he will also call for a command conference at the CCPO to finalize their security preparations for the elections on Oct. 29.
Comelec Provincial Election Supervisor Lionel Marco Castillano also said that during yesterday’s conference, they drew up their augmentation plan and identified the areas where additional troops are needed.
Final plans
Afterwards, Bañares, Castillano and Valmoria held a separate meeting to assess the reports of their subordinates as well as to finalize plan for this Monday’s barangay and polls.
Meanwhile, Alex Villacrucis, election officer of Borbon, said the non-accountable election forms they received were not enough. He feared that accountable forms, like the ballots and election returns, will also not be sufficient.
Jezrel Amoguez of Liloan town echoed Villacrucis’ sentiment, saying that this is also the view of other election officers.
Villacrucis said this is because Comelec Manila based the supplies they sent on the May 14 project of precincts.
Comelec has updated its project of precincts because there was a registration after the May 14 elections. This means the number of registered voters has increased.
Comelec Manila said it will be sending more supplies before election day. (MBG/JST)
