Friday, September 18, 2015

PNP: no private armed groups in Negros Oriental

From the Philippine News Agency (Sep 18): PNP: no private armed groups in Negros Oriental

The Philippine National Police (PNP) has disclosed that there are currently no private armed groups (PAGS) in Negros Oriental that would pose a threat to local security even during the upcoming 2016 election.

Sr. Supt. Roy Abella, deputy provincial police director, made the disclosure during the first consultation forum of the Diocesan Electoral Board of the Diocese of Dumaguete this week.

In that forum, Sr. Supt. Abella allayed public speculation of armed men arriving in Dumaguete City following unverified information circulating through text messaging and social media recently that the kidnap-for-ransom Abu Sayyaf Group was targeting this capital city as well as neighboring towns.

This, even as a Philippine Navy patrol boat was photographed off the coast of Negros Oriental while law enforcement agencies have beefed up security measures especially in the southern towns of the province down to Sipalay in Negros Occidental.

Abella also disclosed that police stations in the six cities and 19 municipalities of the province carry out checkpoints at least twice a day.

The PNP provincial office, headed by Sr. Supt. Dionardo Carlos, will be holding a command conference next week with the police chiefs and other unit commanders to discuss a number of concerns, including private armed groups and other security matters.

The Philippine Army had also reassured during the Diocesan Electoral Board meeting that they have received the same intelligence reports on the alleged plan of the Abu Sayyaf to come to Dumaguete but these are unconfirmed, said Maj. Dranreb Canto of the 302nd Infantry Brigade.

The Diocesan Electoral Board is a non-profit, non-partisan group advocating for clean, honest, peaceful and orderly elections in 2016 and is composed of church-based groups, law enforcement agencies, government and non-government organizations and agencies and the media, among others.

http://www.pna.gov.ph/index.php?idn=2&sid=&nid=2&rid=805705

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