MANILA -- The 150-day election period will begin on Sunday, January 10, and the poll body will have the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) at its "full disposal," officials said.
Also starting Sunday, the prohibition on carrying firearms takes effect, and the suspension of elective officials is prohibited, as well as the transfer of officers and employees of the civil service.
"Even though a person has the license to possess firearms, that is still prohibited whether it may be in parks, boulevards, and even in private cars or public. Lahat po yan ay bawal," said Commission on Elections (Comelec) Commissioner Rene Sarmiento on Friday.
Those who will be caught violating these provisions will face election offenses pursuant to the Omnibus Election Code.
Sarmiento also clarified that toy guns and replicas are included in the gun ban.
"Even though it's just a replica, others may still get scared because of it," he said.
For the first time in the country's electoral history, however, the construction of roads and bridges in most parts of Luzon may be allowed even during the campaign period leading to the May national elections.
President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will reportedly ask the Comelec to exempt infrastructure projects identified by the Special National Public-Private Reconstruction Commission (SNPPRC) from the construction ban imposed every time the nation prepares to go to the polls.
The President's request will be based on SNPPRC's recommendations, which starts consolidating its list of projects on January 14, said SNPPRC secretary-general Ricardo Saludo on Friday.
But despite the exemption on infrastructure projects in Luzon, the gun ban implementation is stricter this 2010 compared last year to minimize election violence, which according to the poll body is caused by partisan armies.
The police forces have so far identified 68 partisan groups -- 43 of which are verified.
"According to the PNP (Philippine National Police), this is one big factor for the commission of violence in the Philippines. This will have implications in the forthcoming elections... This should be disbanded," said Sarmiento.
Also to ensure violence-free elections, the Comelec will have the military at its beck and call, said Defense Secretary and National Security Adviser Norberto Gonzales.
"I am very disturbed about the future of our people. And the election is one of the most strategic actions that our people can do in our democracy and that the Comelec [is] in charge of it," Gonzales said.
Gonzales said he is aware that his decision would raise eyebrows, but that he wants the poll body "to take it for what it is. We in the security establishment would like to see the Comelec succeed. You have the AFP at your full disposal."
Comelec Commissioner Elias Yusoph, for his part, welcomed Gonzales' directive.
"We have deputized the entire AFP to secure areas from loose firearms. There will be no exception in the gun ban. Everything should be well as we expect the delivery of the PCOS (precinct count optical scan) machines will be finished by third week of February," Yusoph said.
He added that the poll body is optimistic that May election will take place.
The Comelec also believes that election violence will be minimized with the help of the new automation system since the counting will be much faster compared to previous manual elections.
"We in the Comelec believe in the poll automation because it's the best way that we can have an orderly election," Yusoph said.
Election violence may be defined as an unfortunate event caused by an intense political rivalry, like the case of the Ampatuans and the Mangudadatus in Maguindanao, which resulted in the killing of at least 57 people, including journalists, last November 23. 2009.
Aside from the warring clans in Maguindanao, which belongs to the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Armm), the Comelec has also identified other regions that are election hot spots. These include the Caraga Region, Central Mindanao, Western Mindanao, Eastern Visayas, and National Capital Region (NCR). (Kathrina Alvarez/JCZ of Sun.Star Davao/With PNA/Sunnex)