BONTOC, Mountain Province – Election and police officials are grateful over the peaceful May 14, barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections following the zero violence recorded in the province during the conduct of the political exercise.
Except for minor incidents related to the missing names of voters in the list of voters, Provincial election Supervisor Ricardo Lampac said all the winning barangay and SK officials in the different barangays of the province were already proclaimed by the board of election canvassers aside from the fact that there were no election protests that were filed with the concerned canvassers.
“All the minor problems that were referred to our election officers on the ground were immediately addressed that is why we are elated over the outcome of the elections in the province wherein there were no violent incidents that interrupted the voting and canvassing of votes, except for certain intensed political rivalries in Natonin and Paracelis,” Lampac stressed.
He said that pertinent reports are now being finalized by the local election office which will subsequently be submitted to the Comelec central office for information, guidance and ready reference in the future.
Mountain Province Provincial Police Office Senior Superintendent Allen S. Ocden expressed his gratitude to the people of the province for their cooperation in the implementation of the stringent security measures for the May 14 barangay and SK elections because there were no untoward incidents that interrupted the smooth conduct of the political exercise which should be replicated in the conduct of future elections in the province.
“We are also grateful to our brothers and sisters in the mountains for refraiming from creating trouble that could have affected the peaceful conduct of the elections that is why we remain optimistic that we will be able to replicate the peaceful polls during the local elections next year,” Ocden stressed.
The police official explained that the police and military security plans were in place for the worst case scenario but concerned officials were elated over the peaceful outcome of the elections in the different parts of the province.
According to him, everyone deserves the credit for the peaceful outcome of the political exercise although there was only an average of 70 percent turnout of voters province-wide.
Ocden said the local police force will continue to engage the concerned sectors of the community, imparting to the people the benefits of the reign of lasting peace, especially in the countryside, so that investors will be enticed to infuse the needed capital that will spur increased economic activities in the remote villages of the province.
He added that what the local police is offering to the people and even the communist rebels is for everyone to embrace peace as their priority to prevent the occurrence of untoward incidents that will compromise their safety because peace will always be in their hand when visiting the different part of the province aside from the government-s anti-criminality and peacekeeping initiatives.
By HENT
