February 7, 2007, The Philippine Star, Soldiers tapped for 'selective' duty in polls,

February 7, 2007, The Philippine Star, Soldiers tapped for 'selective' duty in polls,

The military will be tapped to serve in the May 14 midterm elections "on a selective basis," the Commission on Elections (Comelec) said Tuesday.

Comelec Chairman Benjamin Abalos said members of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) will still be tapped to help secure identified election hot spots.

"Selective deputization is allowed because we have received feedback that there are teachers who are apprehensive about performing poll duties without military men around them," Abalos said.

Abalos explained military personnel have been deputized to secure poll precincts in rebel-infested areas in the country.

He added Comelec would deputize military personnel to areas where there are not enough policemen.

"There are areas where there are no PNP (Philippine National Police) such as in Kalayaan Island where we have two polling precincts. So military personnel would be deployed there," he said.

Abalos, however, stressed that military personnel are generally restricted from performing poll duties.

"Their main responsibility is only to sanitize the area, definitely they are not allowed to perform poll duties," he said.

Earlier, the Comelec and the Department of National Defense (DND) and the AFP forged an agreement limiting the functions of military personnel during elections.

The MOA was meant to avoid involvement of the military in partisan politics.

Abalos, meanwhile, said the Comelec commissioners are now visiting different provinces to personally assess the situation and identify the so-called areas of concern.

The Comelec en banc is still deliberating on the request of Abra Gov. Vicente Valera to declare the province under Comelec control. Mayen Jaymalin