Garcia wants Maguindanao del Norte town under Comelec control
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MANILA, Philippines — Commission on Elections (Comelec) Chairman George Erwin Garcia will recommend declaring Datu Odin Sinsuat in Maguindanao del Norte under Comelec control following the ambush an election officer.
Garcia said on Wednesday that he would raise this action to the Commission en banc.
“I will recommend myself to the Commission en banc to declare Datu Odin Sinsuat under Comelec control… Because of the incidents that occurred in the area in the past weeks and months,” Garcia told reporters in Filipino in an interview.
“That’s why I think it’s right to put it under Comelec control. We are saying that Comelec officials or employees should not be victims of threats. Voters should not be hurt, intimidated, or terrorized because the Comelec will not allow that,” he added.
Lawyer Maceda Abo, the election officer of Datu Odin Sinsuat, and husband Jojo Abo were shot in Barangay on their way to the municipal election office in Barangay Dalican.
According to initial reports, Maceda’s husband was pronounced dead on arrival, while the election officer was severely injured when brought to the hospital. Garcia shared that Maceda later also died.
READ: Maguindanao del Norte election exec hurt, husband dead in ambush
Garcia explained that Comelec control means full and absolute control of an area.
“We will not allow our local Comelec [officers] to not have any security in the area. We need to not just increase the presence of AFP [Armed Forces of the Philippines] and PNP [Philippine National Police], but also the number of checkpoints in the area,” he said.
He also mentioned that the election officer was present during the peace covenant signing of gubernatorial aspirants from Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte held in Datu Odin Sinsuat last Tuesday.
READ: Comelec: Fewer areas under serious threats for 2025 polls
He also said that the election officer did not report any threats or intimidation. However, he added that she requested a security detail but was not given any.
The poll body’s latest data on election areas of concern showed that Datu Odin Sinsuat was placed under the orange category. Areas under this category are tagged with serious threats.
