By MM GILLERA in Cagayan de Oro City
abs-cbnNEWS.com/Newsbreak
Election watchdogs in the Lanao provinces are teaching volunteers skills other than keeping an eye on possible fraud in Monday’s regional polls in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).
With the threat of hostilities by factions or supporters of the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) after the aborted signing of an agreement on an expanded Muslim territory, election volunteers are being trained on administering first aid on prospective victims of violence.
Salic Ibrahim, chair of Citizens’ Coalition for ARMM Electoral Reform (Citizens’ CARE) and Bantay Ceasefire, said they have created roving monitors for quick response to eventualities.
These roving monitors will be carrying first aid kits to give initial treatment to those who might be hurt. They will be coordinating with the police, military, and election officials for further response to the incidents.
Still, they are hoping that the government can end the threat of poll violence before Monday.
“We just hope that the government can really do something to avoid the clashes to erupt in Lanao,” said Hadji Abdullah Dalidig, chair of the Muslim Multisectoral Peace for Development (MMPD) based in Marawi City.
Members of his group sightings of MILF forces in the Lanao provinces. Text messages have been circulating in the area, warning people to watch out for possible eruption of violence.
"We believe this is not an official statement from the MILF, but perhaps from their local supporters. However, we cannot discount the possibility of security threats that may arise as the election nears, but as of today the security and preparations for the elections are okay," Ibrahim said.
Ibrahim said Citizens’ CARE has about 7,000 election monitor volunteers all over ARMM. The youngest members are the first time voters, while majority of the volunteers are between 18 and 35 years old. Citizens’ CARE began serving during the 2005 ARMM polls.
There are other matters that keep the election watchdogs tense—the new machines, for example, may give rise to new ways of cheating, said Ibrahim.
“We looked forward to observing new things in this year’s elections, although we will focus on the possible vote-buying and disenfranchisement of the voters incidents before the automation starts and the possible cheating during the automation,” he said.
“Whatever lessons we could learn from this automation election, we would apply this to the 2010 elections. We would create guidelines from the experiences we could learn after the August 11 ARMM polls,” Ibrahim said.
The 4th Infantry Division based in Cagayan de Oro City has created a task group for the ARMM elections in the Lanao areas. The 4th ID has jurisdiction only in the towns of Wao and Bumbaran in Lanao del Sur.
Maj. Michele Anayron Jr., chief of the 4th ID Public Affairs Office, said that the Eastern Command has directed the 4th ID to create the task group.
“We have created a task group comprised of an infantry component with a battalion size ready for dispatch to the Lanao areas for any eventualities,” Anayron said.
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