391 S. Mindanao barangays tagged as election hotspots

DAVAO CITY , Philippines  â€“ At least 391 barangays in Southern Mindanao have been placed under the watchlist of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) as areas of concern in connection with the Oct. 28 village polls.

Compostela Valley has the most number of election hotspots with 101 barangays.

Chief Superintendent Wency Pascual, Region 11 police director, said no urban barangays in the region are in the watchlist, with those tagged as hotspots located in the outskirts where there are lawless armed groups like the New People’s Army.

No barangay has been placed in the Comelec watchlist due to political violence, Pascual said.

Senior Inspector Gretchen Cinco, spokesperson of the Region 11 police, gave assurance that the police and military would be tightly monitoring the 391 poll hotspots.

On Oct. 19, the joint police-military peace and security coordinating center will meet with the Comelec for a final assessment of these areas of concern.

Meanwhile, several known personalities have joined the barangay elections here, including former city councilor and militant leader Angela Librado-Trinidad and January Navares-Duterte, wife of Vice Mayor Paolo Duterte.

There was talk that no less than City Mayor Rodrigo Duterte prodded Trinidad to run for barangay head so she could be the next president of the city’s Association of Barangay Captains, assuring her of a seat in the city council.

Vice Mayor Duterte, however, said it is not the mayor who would choose the next ABC president but the barangay chiefs themselves.

The young Duterte was once an ABC president, leading to his entry in politics.