PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief General Benjamin C. Acorda Jr. Saturday commended all his officers and men for the peaceful Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) and observance of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day last week.

Appropriate medals will be given to members of the 228,000-strong police force who worked round-the-clock to keep the BSKE and the observance of ‘Undas’ as peaceful as possible, said the top cop.

He cited the active support of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG), the Commission on Elections (COMELEC) and all their other partner-government agencies in ensuring a much safer and orderly October 30 elections.

All police regional units noted a generally peaceful and orderly observance of All Saints’ Day and All Souls’ Day across the country.

No major incidents were recorded, except for an incident outside the Palanyag Public Cemetery in Barangay San Dionisio in Parañaque City where a policeman identified as Corporal Roselito Delayun was wounded after being shot with his own gun by a drunken man.

In Calamba City, four members of a family died while six were injured in a road crash in Barangay Bucal on All Saints’ Day.

Last Monday’s BSKE was described by the Comelec and the PNP as ‘generally peaceful’ except for some shooting incidents in the Bangsamoro Administration Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

Six people were reported dead in shooting incidents that marred the conduct of the polls.

Apart from the shooting incidents in BARMM, there were also reported incidents of fistfights, harassment of poll officers and tearing of ballots in some areas although police immediately addressed them.

COMELEC chairman George Garcia admitted there’s really ‘no perfect election’ as he cited complaints on missing names on the voters’ list and other problems that were relayed to them.

Last Monday, two people died while four were wounded in a shooting incident in Datu Odin Sinsuat in Maguindanao, which broke out shortly before polling centers in the area opened.

Another person was killed in a gun attack in the province. A candidate for barangay captain in Butig, Lanao del Sur, as well as another candidate for the same position, and five others were also hurt in a shooting incident in Tuburan, Basilan.

Acorda’s assertion of a generally peaceful election was seconded by various groups, including the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) and the Legal Network for Truthful Elections (LENTE).

The PNP said it is investigating 45 validated Election-Related Incidents (ERIs) in the country since August 28 which resulted in the killing of 15 persons and injuries to 43 others.

Acorda maintained that it is imperative to recognize that the responsibilities of the policemen extended beyond the voting booths.

“We are resolute in our commitment to ensuring that every single vote is counted accurately and that the deserving candidates are rightfully proclaimed. Upon the culmination of this election exercise, we will still be providing comprehensive security coverage during the transport of election paraphernalia back to the Comelec warehouse.

We guarantee that every precaution will be taken to ensure the safe and efficient handling of these vital components of democracy,” he said.

Police across the country also stepped-up their enforcement of the gun ban imposed in connection with the BSKE. The nationwide prohibition on the unauthorized carrying of firearms in public will end on November 28.

Last week, National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) director, Brigadier Gen. Jose Melencio C. Nartatez Jr. said 298 members of the NCRPO Regional Mobile Force Battalion (RMFB) were sent to the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao to help secure the BSKE.

“On behalf of Team NCRPO, congratulations! You have been the vanguards of Team NCRPO.

What you did there put a mark that anywhere else, kaya natin maglingkod at gampanan nang maayos ang ating trabaho o misyon na panatilihin ang kaayusan at kapayapaan lalo na ang pagsiguro sa kaligtasan ng ating mamamayan,” Nartatez told the RMFB personnel.

Twenty-six Police Commissioned Officers led the five teams of NCRPO-RMFB personnel who were deployed in Datu Piang, Pagalunan, Pandag, Rajah Buayan and Sultan sa Barongis, all in Maguindanao.

They helped the BARMM police perform election-related duties including securing polling centers and other places of convergence in the region apart from enforcing the gun ban and other provisions of the Omnibus Election Code.