BACOLOD City – The Regional Joint Security Control Center is expected on March 19 to name the areas of concerns for the midterm elections in the Negros Island Region (NIR).
During the meeting on March 19, Atty. Lionel Marco Castillano, Commission on Elections regional director for NIR, said that they will also discuss the contingency plans of local government units affected by the Kanlaon volcano eruption, for the May 12 polls.
Twenty-three of the 25 towns and cities in Negros Oriental have been initially identified as areas of concern by the provincial Comelec office, which is now up for approval by the RJSCC.
Negros Oriental was placed under Comelec control during the 2023 barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, following election related killings, including the assassination of then Gov. Roel Degamo.
Another unnamed town in Negros Occidental is also being eyed as an area of concern.
Castillano said they have already submitted an initial list of areas that are in the watchlist for the upcoming polls.
The Comelec is also studying the new assessment of the classification of areas of concern for the 2025 polls, according to its Chairman George Erwin Garcia recently.
Garcia said that there might be areas that can be upgraded to the red category or downgraded to the green category.
The red category refers to areas with serious or grave threats amid the preparations for the 2025 polls, while the green category refers to areas with no security concerns.
Comelec has initially identified 38 areas of concern under the red category, including one in Western Visayas due to serious or grave threats.
Meanwhile, the Commission on Elections is committed to act on the proliferation of illegal campaign materials in Negros Island Region, said its regional director, Atty. Lionel Marco Castillano.
Castillano recently said they will document the violations, and report to their national office, which will then decide whether to press charges against violators.
“They will either face charges for the election offense or disqualification,” he added.
Posters of national candidates can be seen along the national highways, with many such campaign materials obviously oversized.
Abang Lingkod, along with 33 party-list organizations participating in the May 2025 polls, have been initially identified by Comelec as among the violators of campaign rules.
According to the Comelec, the posting of campaign materials in public places is only allowed in common poster areas.
What is prohibited is the posting of campaign materials on trees, poles and public structures, Castillano said.
He, however, said candidates can post campaign materials and billboards in any size and shape as long as they are located on private property.
But Castillano said they have to seek the permission of the owners of the private property.
Those who insist on posting campaign materials on trees will face charges not only for violation of the Fair Election Act, but also of the Forestry Law, Castillano said.*
(Gilbert Bayoran via tvds)