AFP, PNP, Comelec meet to ensure peaceful 2019 polls, BOL plebiscite

(Eagle News)—The Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine National Police, and the Commission on Elections met on Thursday, Jan. 10, to discuss preparations to  ensure a peaceful conduct of the 2019  elections and the Bangsamoro Organic law plebiscite this month.

In a statement, the Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Committee, as the agencies are jointly called, said the meeting was to “further synergize our respective police and military strategies into a national campaign that will defeat all threat groups and criminal elements and ensure security and maintain public safety.”

The plebiscite for the ratification of the BOL is slated on Jan. 31 and Feb. 6.

The BOL pushes for a Bangsamoro Autonomous Region instead of an Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao.

The 2019 elections, on the other hand, are slated in May.

The meeting took place after Cotabato, which is covered by the plebiscite, was rocked by a blast that killed at least two people on Dec. 31.

The police have also described some kilings as being politically motivated with a few months left before the elections.