PAGADIAN
CITY, Jan. 30 (PIA) -- In
preparation for the conduct of the May 2013 midterm elections, the
representatives of the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), Philippine National
Police (PNP), Armed of Forces of the Philippines (AFP), National Police
Commission (NAPOLCOM) and the Department of Interior and Local Government
(DILG) held on Thursday a joint provincial security control conference at Camp
Abelon headquarters here to discuss the different COMELEC resolutions attendant
to the upcoming balloting.
These
representatives of the agencies deputized for the May 2013 elections discussed
their respective roles during election period along with the implementation of
the gun ban and establishment of checkpoints.
ZamboSur
Police Provincial Office officer-in-charge P/Sr. Superintendent Thomas Abellar
said “there is a need for them to sit down along with these agencies in the
enforcement of pertinent Comelec resolutions.”
Abellar said
the conference aimed at helping the Comelec in ensuring compliance with the
different activities during the election period from Jan. 13 to June 30, 2013.
Also
discussed in said meeting were Comelec resolutions no. 9165-A and 9588,
prohibiting the bearing, carrying or transport
of firearms or other deadly weapons outside the residence and in public places
during election period, and the guidelines on the establishment and
operation of Comelec checkpoints.
DILG-9 Assistant Regional Director Pedro Cuevas lauded the PNP for
spearheading the conference, saying that vital issues were successfully
discussed between and among the Comelec, PNP, AFP and DILG particularly on the
gun ban and the establishment of checkpoints.
Cuevas said a day after the implementation of gun ban, it was reported
on TV, newspapers, and radio that there were already violations committed.
“There is an imperative need for us to implement the said resolutions in our
region and province so that we will not encounter problems,” Cuevas urged.
As provincial election supervisor Atty. Ignacio Baya failed to attend
the meeting, Napolcom-9 Assistant Regional Director Pablito Abad Jr., a lawyer,
helped interpret the provisions of the election code as well as the possible
applications and implications of the law so as to guide the Comelec-deputized
agencies in carrying out their respective duties and functions to make the May
2013 elections honest, orderly, peaceful and credible. (FPG/GCC/PIA,Pagadian City)