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Philippines to send 40,000 troops to secure elections

02 May 2022 03:58 (UTC +04:00)

Philippine military says more than 40,000 troops will be deployed to prevent disruption of May 9 elections, APA reports citing Arab News.

Filipinos must choose a successor to President Rodrigo Duterte. They will also elect a vice president, about 300 deputies and 18,000 local government representatives, including provincial governors and city mayors.

The Philippine polling commission, known as Comelec, has identified more than a hundred "areas of serious concern" throughout the archipelago country.

Colonel Ramon Zagala, spokesman for the Philippine Armed Forces, said the military is working alongside the Philippine National Police to provide security during the election.

“Right now, we have committed 40,000 troops just for the elections and… we can commit even more,” Zagala explained in an interview with Arab News.

“There are 114 cities and 15 cities that Comelec has identified as areas of major concern that we will focus on,” said Zagala.

Zagala explained that at present there are no serious threats to the elections, but the authorities "will continue to monitor and constantly conduct checkpoints."

“We are monitoring the areas where these groups are based,” the military emphasized.

One of the country's deadliest election-related incidents was the Maguindanao massacre in November 2009, ahead of the 2010 presidential election. It claimed the lives of 58 politicians, their supporters and at least 32 journalists.