SAN FERNANDO, La Union –
The New People’s Army (NPA) has fielded some of its members to run as village
chiefs or councilmen in the Oct. 28 barangay elections in the Ilocos region,
police said.
Senior Supt. Sterling Raymund
Blanco, intelligence chief of the Region 1 police, disclosed in a briefing of
election and law enforcement officials at Camp Florendo here Oct. 18 at least
23 supposed NPA members taking part in the village polls are being monitored in
the provinces of Pangasinan, Ilocos Sur, Ilocos Norte, and La Union.
“Some of these (NPA members) are
incumbents,” Blanco said.
To prevent the NPA from taking
advantage of the barangay elections, either by penetrating local governments or
staging terrorist activities, police and military officials have prepared a
tight security plan.
Chief Supt. Ricardo Marquez,
Region 1 police director, said police, along with the Army and Navy, have
beefed up security measures during and after the barangay elections to ensure
peace and order.
Col. Vic Castro of the Army’s
72nd Infantry Brigade said they would assist policemen in tightly monitoring the
elections to thwart any NPA attacks.
“The NPA might take advantage of
the election period because this is the best time to stage an ambush or any
kind of sabotage, including (attacks on) vital installations,” Castro said.
Authorities, along with the
Commission on Elections (Comelec), have identified 171 barangays in Region 1 as
areas of concern. They also took note of the presence of 14 criminal groups and
two private armies.
Lawyer Noli Pipo, Comelec
regional director, sought tight security for election personnel and teachers
serving in the polls.
“We all know that there is
tension, intense political rivalries in the barangay level because those
(pitted against each other) are relatives, families, friends and neighbors. We
need security for protection,” Pipo said.
Overall, Pipo said he is
confident that barangay elections in Region 1 would be peaceful and orderly.
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