Bacolod City – Army soldiers have been dispatched to augment personnel of various police stations in northern Negros, in line with the synchronized barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, yesterday disclosed Lt. Col. J-Jay Javines, Civil Military Operations officer of the 3rd Infantry Division.
The sendoff ceremony for Army soldiers was held recently, at the 79th Infantry Battalion headquarters in Sagay City, Negros Occidental.
Lt. Col. Arnel Calaoagan, 79IB commanding officer, reminded soldiers who will be deployed in different police stations, to strictly follow and abide to the laws as embodied on different Commission on Elections (Comelec) resolutions and memorandums issued for the upcoming October 30 elections.
“Let us remain steadfast on our commitment to be a more dependable partner of Comelec and other stakeholders in order to have credible, honest, and clean BSKE election 2023.” Calaoagan said.
The 79IB soldiers will assist the various police stations in the conduct of Comelec checkpoints.
Calaoagan said that Army soldiers will serve as augmentation for the PNP members, who will take the lead role in election duties, in areas that require extra security, particularly those listed as election hotspots.
The Provincial Joint Security Coordinating Center, which is composed of Philippine Army, PNP, Philippine Coast Guard, and the Comelec, has yet to come up with a list of election areas of concern in Negros Occidental.
Javines also said that other Army infantry units have been also tasked to augment manpower of police stations in their respective areas. (Gilbert Bayoran via The Visayan Daily Star (TVDS), photo courtesy of TVDS)
