Batangas posts zero election-related violence

BATANGAS CITY — The electoral process almost went on without a hitch in the province of Batangas, with the provincial police reporting zero election-related violent incidents (EVRI) since the start of the campaign period last January 13.

Batangas Police Director, Col. Edwin A. Quilates, in an interview with the Philippine News Agency (PNA) on Tuesday said the voting was “generally peaceful” even while the mood was somewhat dampened by the malfunctioning of 101 vote counting machines as polling precincts opened at 6 a.m. on Election Day.

Quilates said the provincial office of the Commission on Elections and local election officers expeditiously responded to minor technical glitches and malfunctioning of the machines as voters started to swarm the polling precincts in public schools early Monday.

He added that Batangas has 900 voting centers, about 36.9 percent of which simultaneously opened with neither technical nor security problems encountered.

Quilates said the election officers attributed the minor machine malfunction to overheating, paper jam, and technical issues, but these were repaired or replaced immediately and the polls went on smoothly.

“I sincerely congratulate all the police officers, men, and women in uniform for having demonstrated dedication to duty in ensuring peaceful and orderly conduct of the 2019 mid-term elections in the province of Batangas,” he remarked.

He assured that police personnel will continue to be detailed in polling areas to ensure peace and order as the vote canvassing takes place.

“The deployment of two to four police personnel per polling precinct has greatly helped to further impose security in the elections,” he added.