Security preparations have already been ironed out to ensure a peaceful and orderly elections nationwide, including at Barangay Pag-asa, Kalayaan Island Group in Palawan, which is the country’s most remote village in the West Philippine Sea (WPS), the Philippine National Police (PNP) disclosed Friday.
“It’s green and go nationwide as far as police election security operations is concerned,” said Police Lieutenant General Archie Francisco Gamboa, PNP deputy chief for operations and commander of the PNP National Security Task Force for the 2019 midterm elections.
Gamboa, along with other ranking officials of the PNP, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and Commission on Elections (Comelec) flew to Barangay Pag-asa on Thursday for the final testing and sealing of vote-counting machines (VCM) and voters’ registration and verification system (VRVS) ahead of Monday’s polls.
Comelec Commissioners Al Parreño, Antonio Kho and Louie Tito Guia personally witnessed the final testing and sealing procedures for the election equipment, Gamboa said.
The PNP official said he was pleased with the election security preparations for the holding of elections in Barangay Pag-asa.
According to the PNP, Barangay Pag-asa is the lone village in the Kalayaan Island Group, which is a 5th class municipality that is home to more than 200 civilian residents.
On election day, Pag-asa residents will elect the provincial governor, vice governor, provincial board members, district representative; and the town mayor, vice-mayor, and members of the municipal council of Kalayaan, as well as national candidates for senator and a partylist group.
The mayoral seat of Kalayaan Island Group is being contested by independent candidate Roberto del Mundo and PPP bet Rodrigo Jaca. (Martin Sadongdong)
