ILOILO City – The Commission on Elections (Comelec) will evaluate the situation for two weeks, beginning with the filing of certificates of candidacy (COC), before naming election watchlist areas (EWAS), also called “election areas of concern” or “election hotspots.”
Comelec Region 6 director Atty. Dennis Ausan said the Regional Joint Security Control Center (RJSCC) may meet by mid-September to discuss developments.
RJSCC is composed of Comelec, the Philippine National Police, the Armed Forces of the Philippines, and the Philippine Coast Guard.
“Sa subong, wala pa gid kita naka-come up sang listahan sang mga election watchlist areas, precisely because one parameter in classifying certain areas is intense political rivalry,” Ausan told Panay News yesterday morning.
While he confirmed the Comelec received reports about clan rivalries ahead of the filing of the COC, Ausan said those could not be considered yet.
“Lantawon naton together with partner law enforcers. We will be sitting down again after the filing of COC and getting outputs coming from city, municipal, and provincial levels para i-collate tanan and perhaps lantawon naton if ready na kita magpagwa sang listahan sang EWAS,” he added.
Aside from intense political rivalry, another factor in determining EWAS is an area’s history of election-related violence, insurgency, and the presence of private armed groups.
To determine the severity of concern, the Comelec has created categories.
Areas classified as “green” do not have any security concerns and are considered generally peaceful and orderly amid the polling season.
On the other hand, category “yellow” areas are those with some history of violence due to the election or those with intense political rivalry sans the involvement of terror groups.
“Orange” areas are places that have the qualifications to be categorized as “yellow” but experience armed threats from domestic terror groups and other forces.
Those classified as “red” areas have a history of violence, the existence of political rivalries, and the threat of armed terror groups that are recognized by a relevant government agency. This may warrant the area being under Comelec’s control.
“Red category” is the highest classification for election areas of concern.
After filing the COC, aspirants were advised to ask election officers about the dos and don’ts during the campaign period from Oct. 19 to 28. (With a report from the www.philstar.com)/PN
