MARAWI City — As the May 12 elections draw near, the government’s Coordinating Committee on the Cessation of Hostilities (CCCH) and the Ad-Hoc Joint Action Group (Ahjag) have issued guidelines aimed at preventing “bloody encounters” among soldiers, police, and Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) forces in Lanao del Sur.
The Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity (Opapru) gathered Army and MILF field commanders to sign a covenant to avoid mis-encounters during the election.
Colonel Joel Mamon, head of the government CCCH and Ahjag, said the covenant signing was crucial, as Army and police teams are expected to secure Commission on Elections (Comelec) personnel and public school teachers in communities with a strong MILF presence.
Mamon emphasized that understanding the guidelines is key “to prevent confrontational situations” among MILF forces and Army and police units as they enter towns and villages in Lanao del Sur.
These areas have been identified by Comelec as “hot spots” or “red zones” for the upcoming vote.
He said implementation of the guidelines began with the signing of the agreement among Army, police, and MILF field commanders at the Army’s 103rd Infantry Brigade headquarters in Kampo Ranao, Marawi City, last Saturday, May 3.
The guidelines will remain in effect through May 13.
Janati Mimbantas, Northeastern Mindanao Front commander of MILF forces in the Lanao provinces and a member of the Bangsamoro Transition Authority, signed the agreement on behalf of the MILF.
“We also aspire for honest elections. We have fought and sacrificed enough to break the guidelines,” Mimbantas said during the gathering.
For better coordination, Mimbantas said the MILF CCCH team will inform their field units about Army and police convoys entering their communities on election day.
Mamon said that under the operating guidelines, MILF forces agreed not to hinder convoys carrying election paraphernalia, ballot boxes, Comelec personnel, or public school teachers escorted by the Army or police.
Water and land routes used by MILF fighters will remain open to government troops and election officials before, during, and after the elections, he added.
“MILF forces are prohibited from displaying firearms or consolidating forces when Army and police escorts accompany Comelec personnel and teachers in and out of communities or MILF camps,” Mamon said.
He noted that only Camp Bushra, the headquarters of the MILF Eastern Mindanao Command in Butig, Lanao del Sur, and Darapanan, the main administrative camp in Simuay, Sultan Kudarat, are exempt from the guidelines.
Violations of the agreement will be considered ceasefire breaches, Mamon said.
Any MILF member found supporting a political candidate will likewise be deemed in violation of the ceasefire and subject to Comelec laws.
Comelec regional director for the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (Barmm), Lawyer Ray Sumalipao, said police and Army troops would begin deploying in 20 out of Lanao del Sur’s 39 municipalities categorized as election “hot spots.”
The identified towns include Bacolod-Kalawi, Balindong, Bayang, Binidayan, Buadiposo-Buntong, Butig, Lumbaca-Unayan, Maguing, Malabang, Marantao, Marogong, Masiu, Mulondo, Piagapo, Pualas, Saguiaran, Sultan Dumalundong, Tamparan, Tubaran, and Tugaya.
Marawi City, with 79,288 registered voters, is also listed as a hot spot.
In a possible preview of election-related violence, a white Toyota van with plate number NCF 2218, carrying 20 alleged “flying voters,” was stopped and attacked in Barangay Batobato, Maguing town, last Thursday.
Maguing police investigator Master Sgt. Aminola Ugarinan said all 20 passengers were injured and required hospitalization. The suspects fled before police arrived.
