BACOLOD City Mayor Evelio Leonardia yesterday, May 14, ordered the police to monitor the alleged presence of an armed group that was sighted in five barangays in the city.
Leonardia said he was informed Sunday, May 13, that unidentified, suspicious armed men were sighted in the areas of Barangays Bata, Estefania, Granada, Banago, and Mansilingan.
"I would like to confirm this report because, in previous years, there is no reported presence of the armed group in Bacolod. The election here is peaceful compared to other areas," he said.
Meanwhile, Leonardia together with his wife Elsa and their daughter Kara cast their votes at Education and Training Center School (ETCS)-3 for Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections yesterday.
The mayor said a big number of voters participated in this year's election compared to the previous years.
"The participation of our residents is an indication that they want to participate because the barangay election is personal compared to the national elections," he said.
Teodora Cabilso, coordinator of the Parish Pastoral Council for Responsible Voting (PPCRV) Diocese of Bacolod, said the village and youth polls in Bacolod were generally peaceful.
She said several PPCRV volunteers were deployed to various polling precincts to assist the voters.
"Our volunteers are assisting the voters to locate their names including their polling precincts, especially the senior citizens and persons with disability," she added
PPCRV is a non-partisan, non-sectarian, non-profit organization affiliated with the Roman Catholic.
They have more than 1,000 volunteers in Negros Occidental.
The PPCRV officials are also validating the report of the alleged commotion transpired between their volunteers and a parish priest in Barangay Punta Taytay. (MAP)