310 Bacolod Cops to Help Secure Negros Oriental Polls

By Glazyl M. Jopson

BACOLOD CITY – A total of 310 personnel from the Bacolod City Police Office (BCPO) will be deployed to Negros Oriental to augment security for the May 12 midterm elections, according to Commission on Elections (Comelec)–Negros Island Region (NIR) Regional Director Lionel Marco Castillano.

In a media interview Tuesday, Castillano said the deployment will happen three days before the election.

While Bacolod has fewer voting centers, it has more than 1,000 police personnel, allowing for temporary reassignment without compromising local peace and order, he assured.

“For election lang naman ito,” Castillano said.

Earlier this year, the Police Regional Office (PRO)-7 deployed 200 personnel to Negros Oriental.

Following the reactivation of PRO-NIR, those officers have since returned to their original assignments.

Castillano noted that La Libertad and Guihulngan City remain under the red category—areas with serious threats and a history of election-related violence—while the rest of the province is under the yellow category, indicating some past incidents.

A new list of areas of concern is expected next week to guide security deployments, he added.

Negros Oriental was placed under Comelec control during the 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections following the assassination of then-Governor Roel Degamo.

Castillano said this year’s campaign period in Negros Oriental has remained peaceful, with most political activity happening online.

He reported no private armed groups in the region and minimal threat from the New People’s Army (NPA), citing ongoing military operations.

The Comelec-NIR conducted its third Regional Joint Security Control Center meeting Monday in Sibulan town, where officials finalized deployment plans, contingency responses for Mt. Kanlaon, and coordination strategies for election day.