CEBU CITY, Philippines—For the second election in a row, Cebu province is free from any election hotspot.
The Commission on Elections in Cebu (Comelec-Cebu) confirmed that localities in the province were not included in the Election Watchlist Areas (EWAs) for the National 2022 elections.
“So far Cebu province is very peaceful. Hayahay man atoang kalungsuran. Pero atong sige og monitor because (fluid) man ang situation. Wala ta kabalo when mospark,” said lawyer Jerome Brillantes, acting Provincial Elections Supervisor of Comelec – Cebu.
EWAs refer to areas where election-related violence and similar incidents may occur.
Brillantes also said that the government-led committee tasked to evaluate EWAs decided not to put San Fernando town in southern Cebu as part of the country’s election hotspot areas.
This despite the recent gruesome killing of an aspiring town councilor and her husband.
“Ruled by our PNP nga personal crime and not related sa elections. But gipanginvestigate pa sa atong kapulisan, labi na and further considering that the victim is a candidate as a town councilor,” Brillantes explained.
It was only during the 2019 Midterm Elections when officials declared the entire Cebu province as a hotspot-free area.
READ: No more ‘red election hotspots’ in Cebu, says PRO-7 official
Based on CDN’s archives, several towns such as Tuburan, Dumanjug, and San Fernando, were placed in the government’s EWAs in the past due to tensions between local candidates.
Cebu is the country’s most vote-rich province, with over 3.2 million individuals expected to cast their ballots this May 9, 2022.
/bmjo