The Philippine National Police (PNP) is ramping up to full alert starting Saturday, May 3, as it braces for the 2025 midterm elections.
“Walang pabahay. We are 100% on alert starting tomorrow,” declared PNP Chief Police General Rommel Marbil.
He revealed that police forces are already on the ground, with the bulk of election personnel deployed in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). “Eighty percent of our team is there now, which is exactly what the situation demands. But as of now, we’re fully mobilized. Our pulis are in position and ready,” he emphasized.
The PNP also disclosed a rise in election-related incidents (ERIs), tallying 35 validated cases as of the latest update on April 28.
The most hotspots are in the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) with 11 incidents, followed by BARMM with eight, and Calabarzon with five. Other incidents were scattered in Zamboanga Peninsula (3), Western Visayas (2), Davao Region (2), plus individual cases in Ilocos Region, Central Luzon, Eastern Visayas, and Soccsksargen.
Moreover, seven suspected ERIs remain under validation across Cagayan Valley, Bicol, Soccsksargen, CAR, and Metro Manila.
In a grim turn, the election season was marred by the brutal killing of Ang Bumbero ng Pilipinas Partylist nominee Leninsky Bacud. Gunmen on a motorcycle ambushed Bacud along P. Guevarra Street in Barangay 435, Zone 44 in Sampaloc, Manila. Multiple gunshot wounds claimed his life despite emergency hospital care. Witnesses reported a gunfight with police during the attack, leaving several vehicles damaged.
The Manila Police District’s homicide division has launched a full investigation into the murder.
With Election Day set for May 12, preparation remains intense. Overseas Filipino voters can already cast ballots from April 13 to May 12, while local absentee voting took place from April 28 to 30.
Security forces know the stakes are high. The nation waits as they stand guard over every ballot and every street, determined to protect the integrity of Eleksyon 2025.