ANTIQUE – Twelve barangays in Antique province have been identified as areas of “immediate concern” or under the “orange” category vis-à-vis the Oct. 30 synchronized barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.
The Antique Police Provincial Office (APPO) said the barangays were in the towns of Sibalom (seven) and San Remigio (five).
Under the Commission on Elections (Comelec) guidelines, according to APPO director Colonel Rogelio Abran Jr., “orange” areas are places that have the qualifications to be categorized as “yellow” but experience armed threats from domestic terror groups and other forces.
“Yellow” areas have some history of election violence or those with intense political rivalry sans the involvement of terror groups.
The Comelec formulated the categories to determine the severity of election concerns in an area.
Abran said these “areas of concern” have reported presence and movement of Communist Terrorist Groups (CTGs).
The police director clarified that the 12 barangays have yet to be disclosed since they are still subject to validation.
Earlier, a joint meeting was held with the Antique Police Provincial Office, Armed Forces of the Philippines and Philippine Coast Guard for the deployment of security forces for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.
“On-going pa ‘yong validation namin kung until now continuous pa rin ang activity ng CTGs,” said Lieutenant Alkent B. Undag, deputy force commander of the 1st Antique Provincial Mobile Force Company, during the joint meeting.
Areas classified as “green” do not have any security concerns and are considered generally peaceful and orderly amid the polling season.
Those classified as “red” areas, the highest classification, have a history of violence, the existence of political rivalries, and experience threats from armed terror groups that are recognized by a relevant government agency. This may warrant the area being under Comelec’s control. (With a report from the Radyo Bandera Sweet FM Antique)/PN
