The Commission on Elections, the Armed Forces of the Philippines and the Philippine National Police successfully held a command conference yesterday in Cotabato City to finalize its preparations in connection with the August 11, 2008 automated elections in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

Attending the conference were high ranking officials of the three agencies led by COMELEC Regional Director for the ARMM Teopisto E. Elnas Jr., ARMM Police Director Joel Goltiao and AFP Vice chief of staff LtGen. Cardozo M. Luna. “Once more we are gathered here with hearts full of hopes and aspirations that through our combined efforts we can make the coming elections in the ARMM an honest, orderly and peaceful one. These series of meetings endeavor only one common goal: to make the ARMM elections a credible as it should be,” stated Gen. Goltiao in his opening remarks.

The police general noted that though the past ARMM elections have been “quite manageable in general,” the PNP, COMELEC and the AFP’s combined efforts have been proven effective particularly in the security aspect in the entire electoral process.

“With the upcoming ARMM elections, our mission remains: we are focused on some major concerns in the protection of electoral sanctity and ensuring that the conduct of elections remains peaceful and orderly,” he said. The PNP has listed a total of 887 election areas of concern and 49 election areas of immediate concern in the whole of ARMM. “It is our honor and pleasure to be part of this sacred exercise of protecting the right to suffrage of every Filipino in this part of the country,” said AFP’s Vice Chief of Staff LtGen. Cardozo Luna.

“Under the AFP’s Task Force Halalan, we are committing 586 officers and 11,418 enlisted men, sailors and marines all over the area,” Luna said, emphasizing the military’s “support” role for the PNP in providing security in the autonomous region.

He said despite a “concoction of events” recently affecting the ARMM such as the attempted postponement of the elections, the Supreme Court order stopping the Moroland deal and the impending pull-out of Malaysia’s International Monitoring Team; “the armed forces is ready, prepared and fully committed to do our mandate and our mission. And the key here is coordination.”

The highest ranking COMELEC official in the ARMM, Regional Director Teopisto E. Elnas said the poll body “is very much ready” to conduct the regional polls in Monday. He said, 3,300 electronic voting machines are set to be deployed starting today until August 8. He also noted that COMELEC Chiefs of staff are deployed in the six ARMM provinces and special action officers will be stationed in strategic municipalities to aid poll officials in addressing any problem in the coming elections. ###