In preparation for the upcoming 2025 midterm elections, the Police Regional Office in Western Visayas (PRO6) is drawing on past experiences to ensure a peaceful electoral process. The region’s security forces are particularly focused on areas flagged by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) as potential trouble spots. During a recent meeting at the Casa Real in Iloilo City, the Iloilo Provincial Joint Security Control Center discussed strategies to maintain peace and order during the elections.
Lt. Col. Arnel Solis, spokesperson for PRO6, highlighted that previous elections in the region, including the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE), and the national elections of 2022 and 2019, were largely peaceful. Despite this, he emphasized that vigilance would not be relaxed to ensure the success of the upcoming elections.
Comelec has categorized seven areas in Western Visayas as yellow, indicating a history of election-related incidents, nine as orange due to serious armed threats, and one, Calinog in Iloilo, as red, signifying both serious armed threats and a history of election-related incidents. Solis noted that while these areas are currently peaceful, their classification is based on specific parameters set by Comelec.
Iloilo’s provincial election supervisor, lawyer Rainier Layson, expressed surprise at the early release of the list of areas of concern by their central office. However, he views this as an opportunity for better preparation and security coordination among Comelec, the Philippine National Police (PNP), the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), and the Coast Guard.
The focus is particularly on Calinog, where an election-related incident occurred during the 2023 BSKE in Barangay Cahigon, involving a clash between a communist terrorist group and government forces. Layson stated that efforts are underway to reduce Calinog’s classification from red to orange by addressing the factors contributing to its current status.