Philippine economy

Central Luzon police chief: Cops ready for May 9 polls

Jun A. Malig

This is AI generated summarization, which may have errors. For context, always refer to the full article.

Central Luzon police chief: Cops ready for May 9 polls
The Police Regional Office 3 sets up a monitoring and action center in preparation for the elections

PAMPANGA, Philippines – The Police Regional Office 3 (PRO3) set up an election monitoring and action center in Camp Olivas to serve as its headquarters for implementing the Secure and Fair Elections 2016 (SAFE 2016) campaign of the Philippine National Police (PNP).

PRO3 regional director Chief Superintendent Rudy Lacadin said the 24/7 monitoring room is equipped with “very dependable” communication facilities for real-time monitoring and coordination with lower units before, during, and after the elections on Monday, May 9.

The monitoring center also aims to provide important information to the Commission on Elections (Comelec) and its deputized agencies in Central Luzon for decision-making.

Lacadin said the PRO3 has deployed 8,329 policemen for election duties in polling precincts to various parts of the region.

He added that 123 cops assigned to desk work will also be sent out to augment the number of policemen tasked to ensure safe and fair elections.

Some 111 members of the Regional Public Safety Battalion 3 were also directed to first proceed to Camp Crame. They will be deployed to Mindanao to beef up the security forces there.

Meanwhile, the PRO3 director said some 597 persons have been arrested and 513 firearms confiscated in Central Luzon since the start of the election season.

He said 5 election-related incidents that included mauling, shooting, and strafing were recorded in the provinces of Bataan, Nueva Ecija, Olongapo City, and Tarlac.

In nearby Bulacan province, Comelec provincial election supervisor Lydia Pangilinan said in a statement that they have 74 back-up vote counting machines (VCMs) ready to be brought to polling precincts in case some of the 2,435 VCMs malfunction on Monday.

She said all the VCMs underwent final testing and sealing on May 5.

Bulacan is the most vote-rich province in Central Luzon with some 1.6 million registered voters. – Rappler.com

Add a comment

Sort by

There are no comments yet. Add your comment to start the conversation.

Summarize this article with AI

How does this make you feel?

Loading
Download the Rappler App!