Midterm Election 2019 in Zamboanga Peninsula Generally Peaceful and Orderly

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Camp Col. Abendan, Zamboanga City - The Police Regional Office 9 announced that the conduct of 2019 national and local midterm election in Zamboanga Peninsula turns to be generally peaceful and orderly with no reported major untoward incident that affected the overall turnout of the electoral exercise except for a few cases of technical malfunction of the vote-counting machine

Police Brigadier Gen. Emmanuel Luis D Licup, PRO9 Director however said voting went ahead smoothly and orderly in the 1, 516 voting centers with no reported "failure of election" at the 14, 206 precincts across the region.

The PRO9 director stressed out that the orderly and peaceful conduct of midterm polls attributed to the combined efforts of the AFP counterparts, PNP, and the community. Contingency planning and the establishment of Joint Security Control Center in the provinces and cities in the region also contributed to the success of the electoral exercises.

The Regional Director said that a total of 2,040 local candidates vying for the local positions in their respective place in a highly contested electoral exercises across the region. Despite of these, the electoral process in the whole region turned out to be peaceful.  Police Brigadier Gen Licup commended the effort of local candidates all over the region for their cooperation in keeping the 2019 midterm election a very peaceful and orderly.   

Citing reports from the Regional Election Monitoring Action Center, only 1 incident of vote buying and vote selling was recorded in Guipos, Zamboanga del Sur with 6 persons arrested. The PRO9 thanks the public for actively reporting incidents of vote buying and selling which gains a positive effort of the part of PNP against theses illegal acts.

On liquor- ban, a total number of 4 incidents were reported with 10 persons arrested. On the other hand, since the start of the COMELEC imposed nationwide gun ban last January 13, 2019, the PRO9 arrested a total of 130 individuals as of today. Seized from this arrested persons were 132 firearms and 1, 321 other deadly weapon were confiscated, recovered and surrendered.

Police Brigadier Gen. Emmanuel Luis D Licup, PRO9 Director said the Police and military personnel continue to man their post to provide security to the members of electoral boards and COMELEC personnel and to secure election paraphernalia, documents and equipment’s.

The Regional Director added that these security personnel shall ensure the complete pull out of election personnel’s and materials and the transport of election returns to the local canvassing centers. Police Brigadier Gen Licup further added that out of 112 police officers trained as Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs) that were deployed, 2 of them initially served as Board of Election Inspectors in Barangay Lakiki, Zamboanga City.

The Police Regional Office 9 stressed out the election period will still culminate on June 12, 2019 until such time therefore all illegal acts particularly the carrying of firearms, explosives and other deadly weapon, organization of security forces and unauthorized employment of bodyguards and security personnel remained prohibited and are subject to police intervention.

‘The PRO9 will continue in the state of full preparedness until the electoral exercise is over and are not lowering our guard yet. All election security measures will be similarly implemented in the succeeding days until the official culmination of the election period on June 12, 2019’. The Regional Director added.

Meanwhile, with the success of the security preparation, the Police Regional Office 9 under the leadership of Police Brigadier Gen. Emmanuel Luis D Licup would like to express my deep gratitude to all PNP personnel and thanks the AFP, COMELEC and other government agencies who have been part of this resounding accomplishment. These security personnel, who remained non-partisan and apolitical, provided police assistance in 14, 206 polling precincts across the region to members of the Board of Election Inspectors (BEIs) and 2, 264, 414 voters.

Earlier, the Police Regional Office 9 had deployed 6, 517 personnel across the region to ensure the peaceful orderly election on May 13, 2019 and trained 112 police officers to be assigned as Board Of Election Inspectors(BEIs)  in the far flung areas of Zamboanga Peninsula where their services are needed. Some of the troops served as members of quick reaction teams, reactionary standby support force, and red teams and headquarters skeletal force. (By JONG D. CADION with press release from PRO 9 PIO)