ILOILO City – Barangay Monica-Blumentritt is so far the only election area of concern here vis-a-vis the Oct. 30 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.
“It is under the yellow category due to existing political rivalries,” said Atty. Reinier Layson, the city election officer.
By the Commission on Elections’ (Comelec) definition, yellow category areas are those that have had suspected election-related incidents in their recent past, specifically in the last two elections, but with no known involvement of domestic threat groups.
It also includes areas marked by intense political rivalry, potential partisan armed group involvements by candidates, and areas that had politically motivated incidents in the current election cycle, all without any domestic threat group participation.
“The number of areas of concern may either increase or decrease (as the elections draw near),” said Layson.
Atty. Dennis Ausan, Comelec regional director and chairperson of the Regional Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Council (RJPSCC), has urged for continued monitoring of election-related activities.
His directive applies from the city to the municipal levels as election day draws closer. The aim is to assess whether more areas or barangays should join or leave the current list of areas of concern.
A fortnight ago, in collaboration with the Philippine National Police (PNP), Comelec-6 flagged 172 barangays across Western Visayas as election areas of concern. Of these, three barangays, all located in Negros Occidental, are stamped with a “red” label, signaling the utmost level of concern.
Meanwhile, 163 barangays are tagged under the “orange” bracket, and six under the “yellow”.
Breaking down the 163 “orange” designations: Iloilo province leads with 90, followed by Negros Occidental with 45, Capiz claims 14, Antique has 12, and Aklan registers two.
To understand Comelec’s categorization:
* Green – areas that are considered peaceful and orderly with negligible security concerns
* Yellow – (Election Areas of Concern) as detailed above
* Orange – (Election Areas of Immediate Concern) These areas exhibit two or more attributes from the yellow category or have grave armed threats from groups such as the New People’s Army (NPA), Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG), and other rogue factions.
* Red – (Election Areas of Grave Concern) These are areas that combine one or more characteristics from the yellow category and also face significant threats from groups like the NPA, BIFF, and various rogue elements./PN
