BACOLOD City – Gov. Eugenio Jose Lacson is confident that the upcoming barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections (BSKE) in Negros Occidental will be peaceful.
This was despite after the Provincial Joint Security and Control Center (PJSCC) revealed that 55 villages in the province were tagged as “areas of concern.”
According to Lacson, most of the tagged villages were in the mountainous areas of the province and had the presence of the New People’s Army rebels.
Commission on Elections (Comelec) Negros Occidental elections supervisor Atty. Ian Lee Ananoria, meanwhile, stated that the tagged areas released by the PJSCC are only a recommendation and have not yet reached his office.
Meanwhile, as part of preparations for the upcoming polls, the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) announced that all police personnel with relatives running for any position in the upcoming BSKE will be reassigned to other areas.
According to director Colonel Leo Pamitan, NOCPPO currently has 1,400 personnel assigned to different towns and cities across the province.
Pamitan also said they have not monitored any private armed groups and assured they have enough personnel for the polls.
As of Sept. 6, the police had arrested two Comelec gun ban violators in the province. (Watchmen Daily Journal)
