Ben Madilynn
THE Commission on Elections (Comelec) in the Negros Island Region (NIR) on Monday said there is a possibility that Negros Oriental province will be placed under its control during the 2025 mid-term elections to ensure safe, peaceful, and orderly polls.
Lawyer Lionel Marco Castillano, NIR regional election director, told the Philippine News Agency that placing Negros Oriental under Comelec control would help deter or thwart possible election-related violence.
However, the poll body can only determine the need for such action after the filing of Certificates of Candidacy (COCs) by aspirants from Oct. 1 to 8.
“That is one of the possibilities of the Comelec but it really depends on the situation as it progresses. For now, the RJSCC (Regional Joint Security Control Center) is not yet activated as it is not yet election period, but we have already made prior meetings with our counterparts from the PNP (Philippine National Police) and the AFP (Armed Forces of the Philippines,” Castillano said.
The election period is set from Jan. 12 to June 11, 2025.
The Comelec director added that after the COC filing, they will have a better understanding and assessment of what stringent security measures should be implemented during the election period.
Castillano’s pronouncement came ahead of the COC filing with perceived “hotly-contested” positions, including provincial governor and congressional representatives.
During the October 2023 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE), Negros Oriental was placed under Comelec control with large contingents of police and military deployed in the province to avert violence.
No single election-related violent incident was reported in the province during the 2023 BSKE.
The Comelec en banc approved the recommendation of placing Negros Oriental under Comelec control following the March 4, 2023 assassination of then Governor Roel Degamo which state authorities investigating the case said was politically motivated.
Degamo and nine others were killed while more than a dozen were injured after a group of armed men barged inside his residential compound in Pamplona town.
Castillano expressed hope that placing Negros Oriental under Comelec control would be the “last resort” as it would hurt the province’s economy and the tourism industry.
Meanwhile, the PNP Police Security and Protection Group (PSPG) has already established its office in this capital city.
The PSPG is tasked to secure vital installations, government officials, visitors, and private individuals requiring security.
During the election period, Castillano said government officials seeking elective posts and other aspirants whose lives may be at risk or are facing threats will be provided with security details. (PNA)
