THE Police Regional Office (PRO)-Davao has recommended to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) a total of 251 barangays across the region to be declared as Election Watch List Areas (Ewas).
These barangays will require more security attention for possible eruption of election-related incidents in the coming Barangay and Sangunniang Kabataan election this May 14.
PRO-Davao spokesperson Police Chief Inspector Milgrace Driz said during the AFP-PNP press forum on Wednesday, May 2, at The Royal Mandaya Hotel that they have already submitted a resolution to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) which contains the consolidated report of the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on election areas of concerns.
They recorded 10 barangays for Ewas Category 1 and 241 for Category 2.
Category 1 are areas where politically-motivated violent incidents are likely to occur due to intense partisan and political rivalries.
The occurrence of violence could be facilitated by the candidates’ employment of private armed groups (PAGS).
Category 2 are barangays, towns, and cities where serious armed threats posed by organized groups such as the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People's Army (CPP-NPA), Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), rogue elements of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) and Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF) are present.
In Davao City, there is one barangay recommended for Category 1 while 54 barangays for Category 2.
In Davao del Sur, five for Category 1 and 39 for Category 2, while in Davao Occidental four for Category 1 and seven for Category 2. Davao del Norte, however, identified 50 barangays for category 2 and Compostela Valley Province has 68 for Category 2.
“(The) Resolution we made for the Comelec to approve but nonetheless this was already ‘workshopped’ and given validation through the last week intelligence workshop with the AFP and Coast Guard and is up for Comelec’s approval,” Driz said.
Driz added that there are other categories for EWAS but none of the barangays in the region fell on these.
Category 3 are the barangays, towns, and cities where both factors described under Category 1 and Category 2 are present.
Category 4, however, is where the Comelec may place under its immediate and direct control and supervision any political divisions, subdivisions, units or areas which has all the factors in categories 1 to 3 and have history of current intense rivalry among the contending parties which could motivate people to engage in violent acts.
She, however, refused to reveal the identified barangays under EWAS as their resolution has yet to be approved and it would be the Comelec who will release it to the public.
This will also be their basis on the volume of security personnel to be deployed in the area during the local poll.