Mayors league head hits Abra poll violence reports; no deaths

By Liza Agoot

BAGUIO CITY – The president of the League of Municipalities of the Philippines (LMP), Mayor Joseph Bernos of La Paz, Abra assailed Wednesday reports of political violence in the province saying peace and order situation improved. 

    Speaking during induction of officers of the Baguio Correspondents and Broadcasters Club on Tuesday evening at the Beneco Hall in this city, Bernos said for over a decade, no politician was killed during an election in the province.

    During the past four to six elections, Abra did not record any election-related killings, he said. 

    “The political landscape in Abra has changed. For the past three months, bago ang political dynamics sa Abra (the dynamics in politics is new), he said.” 

    Bernos said Abra used to be a perennial election hotspot and the province gained notoriety because of political violence.  

    “We are from the Cordillera, nakakahiya kami sa Abra kapag pinag-usapan ang election violence. Hiyang-hiya kami nadadamay ang Cordillera because we are a part of it (We in Abra were ashamed when election violence was being talked about. The whole Cordillera region is being dragged because we are part of it),” he said.

    Bernos said they have been trying for years to erase the public’s image of Abra as an unsafe place.

    During the recent Joint Security Council meeting, Brig. Gen. David Peredo, Police Regional Office-Cordillera director, said Abra was placed under the Commission on Elections' "Orange" category due to the previous records and not because there is an ongoing peace and order problem in the province.

    Code "orange" indicates the presence of armed groups and incidents of poll-related violence.

    “Because they have a record, they cannot be considered as green category but that is already past, it is different now,” Peredo said. 

    Meanwhile, with the ongoing Cordillera Administrative Region Athletic Association (CARAA), Bernos said they are keeping an eye on the athletes, and noted that they have improved their standing compared to the previous years. 

    “For the first time in many years, as of Tuesday, we are number 2, next to perennial winner Baguio City,” he said. 

    He added as LMP president, he urged 27 participating municipalities to fully support the athletes. 

“We have to look at the welfare of the athletes kasi noon kulang ang support sa mga pangangailangan nila. This time we made sure that municipalities support the athletes (We have to look at the welfare of the athletes because previously, they lacked that needed support. This time, we made sure that municipalities support their athletes),” he said. -- PNA