4 poll areas of grave concern in Negros Occidental

BACOLOD CITY – Three towns and a city in Negros Occidental have been classified as areas of grave concern in the May elections.

Escalante City, Candoni, Moises Padilla and Calatrava fall under the red category, Brig. Gen. Inocencio Pasaporte, 303rd Infantry Brigade commander and co-chairman of the provincial joint security coordinating center, said.

Pasaporte said the classification was due to threats from New People’s Army (NPA) rebels, the presence of private armed groups and a history of election-related incidents.

In the 2019 elections, Moises Padilla town was placed under the control of the Commission on Elections due to intense political rivalries as well as the presence of armed groups and threat of NPA rebels.

Classifications are based on their color-coded category: green for peaceful, yellow for areas of concern, orange for areas of immediate concern and red for areas of grave concern.

Orange indicates the presence of NPA rebels. Yellow is for those with a history of political unrest while green means no cause for concern.

Toboso, La Castellana, Isabela, Ilog, Hinobaan, Cauayan and Binalbagan towns and the cities of Sipalay, Himamaylan, Victorias and Silay are in the orange category. Don Salvador Benedicto falls under yellow.