PNP CHIEF JOSE MELENCIO NARTATEZ JR.: ‘The Incident Does Not Disrupt The Electoral Process’ Ahead Of BARMM Polls

Pinalalakas ng PNP ang intelligence operations at police deployment habang papalapit ang kauna-unahang parliamentary elections sa BARMM.

PNP CHIEF JOSE MELENCIO NARTATEZ JR.: ‘The Incident Does Not Disrupt The Electoral Process’ Ahead Of BARMM Polls

By Politico.ph
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By Politico.ph
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Philippine National Police (PNP) chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. has called on all police units to intensify intelligence-gathering and conduct real-time deployment adjustments on the remaining days leading to the first parliamentary elections at the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) next month.

He said that the incident involving BARMM Interim Chief Minister Abdulraof “Sammy Gambar” Macacua in Maguindanao del Norte will not affect the scheduled elections on Sept. 14.

“We in the PNP, along with our partners in the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Commission on Elections (Comelec), will continue to assess the security situation and conduct necessary adjustments to ensure that the incident does not disrupt the electoral process,” Nartatez said in a statement on Monday.

Likewise, the PNP chief assured the people of BARMM that the PNP, along with the AFP, Comelec and other stakeholders, will do everything within its mandate to ensure their safety and protect their right to participate freely and peacefully in the elections.

The Comelec earlier said the attack appeared to be an isolated incident and should not be a reason to postpone the BARMM parliamentary polls.

Macacua and members of his entourage escaped unharmed after armed men fired at their convoy Saturday afternoon in Barangay Dulangan, Datu Odin Sinsuat.

He was traveling from his hometown in Barangay Gambar, Mother Kabuntalan after attending the proclamation rally of the Bangsamoro Federalist Party.

Macacua recently joined the party and was named its chairperson after previously running as an independent candidate in the province’s third district.

Nartatez directed police units in BARMM to remain vigilant and politically neutral while protecting voters, candidates and election personnel as the polls draw closer.

Election-Related Incident

In a press briefing held at Camp Crame on Monday, PNP spokesperson Col. Allen Rae Co said the incident is considered a suspected election-related incident (ERI) since it involves a candidate or a public official in the area and it happened during the election period.

“Alam naman natin (We all know that) election period is July 16 to Sept. 29. As of now it is still a suspected ERI. Now magku-convene yung committee dito (Now the committee will convene here) to ascertain whether this will be considered finally as ERI once it meets the criteria so to speak to be labeled as ERI,” Co told reporters.

He also said that the PNP is closely coordinating and working with the Comelec, AFP and other agencies in the area, and if the assessment will change, the threat level will be increased.

“We will be adjusting accordingly, but as of now we have already deployed more than 9,400 personnel to look after yung peace and order during this election, 4,500 of whom are augmented from other units,” he noted.

Joint Peace Mechanisms

Meanwhile, Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (OPAPRU) Secretary Mel Senen Sarmiento, who is also the concurrent Chair of the Government of the Philippines’ Peace Implementing Panel, is closely coordinating with the security sector and his counterparts in the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) through the Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) and the Ad Hoc Joint Action Group (AHJAG) to monitor the peace and security situation in the BARMM.

Sarmiento flew to Maguindanao del Norte on Sunday and met with officials of the 6th Infantry Division of the Philippine Army and the PNP to closely monitor the situation on the ground following the reported ambush of Macacua and his team.

“Under the guidance of President Ferdinand R. Marcos Jr., our agency remains steadfast in its commitment to support the conduct of free, peaceful, honest, and credible elections in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao,” Sarmiento said.

The OPAPRU chief also stressed that they are tapping various joint peace mechanisms such as the CCCH and AHJAG, which are composed of representatives from the GPH and MILF, in preventing the outbreak of violence and securing the safety of the voting public. (With report from Priam F. Nepomuceno/PNA)