AREAS OF CONCERN. Col. Fernando Cunanan Jr. (center), Albay Police Provincial Office (APPO) Director, gives his message during a peace covenant signing and candidates' forum in Bacacay town on Wednesday (Sept. 19, 2023). The APPO identified 96 barangays as Areas of Concern in relation to the Oct. 30 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections. (Photo courtesy of Albay PPO)
LEGAZPI CITY – The Albay Provincial Police Office (APPO) identified 96 barangays as election Areas of Concern (AOC) in connection with the Oct. 30 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE).
In an interview on Friday, APPO spokesperson, Capt. Kharren Formales, said 17 villages are under the “Red” category, which means strict intervention by the police and the military.
Thirty-three are under the “Orange” category or with previous records of election-related conflicts but can be managed, while 46 are “Yellow” or with a history of election-related incidents and possible employment of partisan armed groups.
Formales said the rest of the 624 villages are under code “Green,” which means they do not have security concerns and are generally peaceful and orderly.
"We continue to conduct checkpoints, chokepoints and police presence or visibility in different areas in the province. We also have scheduled peace covenant signing and candidates’ forum for all 15 municipalities and three cities. The candidates have sworn their commitment to peaceful, honest and clean elections," she said.
In a separate interview, APPO Director Col. Fernando Cunanan Jr. said additional police forces will be placed in the AOC, particularly those in the "Red" category.
"The barangays under the Red and Orange category were already discussed during the deliberation with the Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Council. Dadagdagan po natin ang puwersa doon (We will increase the forces there), together with the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the members of the council," Cunanan said.
"Though ngayon po wala naman tayong nakikitang problema doon. However, during the past election kasi doon nagka-problem kaya recorded pa rin sila (now we don't see any problems there. However during the past election, there were problems that's why they are still recorded)," he said. (PNA)
