Guv to meet Iloilo mayors for security briefing

By John Noel E. Herrera

Iloilo Governor Arthur Defensor Jr. is set to meet all local chief executives (LCEs) in the province on Thursday, March 9, 2023 to discuss different security situations at the municipal level.

“We will meet our mayors, together with PNP to give a briefing on the security situation in the province, especially on our campaign against organized crimes,” Defensor said in an interview with Bombo Radyo Iloilo.

Defensor added he invited Police Regional Office (PRO)-6 Director PBGen. Leo Francisco and Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) Director PCol. Ronaldo Palomo to brief the mayors about security measures and the status of crimes in the province.

“We should work more closely with the PNP, continuing dialogue about the security situation and matters of intelligence,” he stressed.

The move came on the heels of the murder of Negros Oriental Gov. Roel Degamo and eight other individuals last March 4, 2023.

On Tuesday, March 7, Defensor also attended a briefing conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP) in Camp Crame to orient local officials about security situations in the localities as a series of political killings already happened.

“Kung ano man ang makuha naton sa briefing sa Camp Crame, we will cascade to our mayors (during the March 9 local briefing), to make sure the measures that we are taking,” he said.

Defensor added that threats triggered by political rivalries in the province are rare, unlike in other provinces, but emphasized that local leaders should still observe security measures.

“Sa eksperyensya ko halin pa sang nag-umpisa ako diri, I take note nga hindi amu sina ang sitwasyon sa probinsya sang Iloilo kag nagapasalamat kita, pero bisan pa we have very occassional or rare situations of violence during the campaign, especially sa municipal level, but we will continue to improve. Dapat dugangan ta pa gid ang ginahimo naton to maintain peace and order in the province, especially kung time sang politika kag para man sa officials,” he said.

Defensor also condemned the killing of Gov. Degamo and eight other individuals in Negros Oriental as “political assassinations have no place in a civilized society where we value human life and protect human rights.”

“The culprits in these senseless killings must be made to answer for the crimes and our police investigation must not leave any stones unturned in identifying and arresting these criminals,” he added.