DATU ODIN SINSUAT, Maguindanao del Norte (PIA) — Over 400 security personnel have been deployed to the Joint Task Force (JTF) Central and the 6th Infantry Division in this municipality as a proactive measure to ensure that the upcoming elections are conducted in a fair, peaceful, and orderly manner.
The augmentation troops, comprising 15 officers and 342 enlisted personnel from the 48th Infantry Battalion, as well as five officers and 66 enlisted personnel from the 1st Company of the Armor Division, arrived at JTF Central on April 15 and 16 to perform election-related tasks in the joint operational area.
Maj. Gen. Donald M. Gumiran, commander of JTF Central and 6ID, stated that additional soldiers will be deployed to the towns of Maguindanao provinces and the special geographic areas (SGA) of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).
“They will be our additional forces for security-related operations and missions in this election period. The JTF Central and 6ID will continue to assess the need of specific areas for additional troops,” Gumiran stated.
The SGA includes 63 barangays distributed among various municipalities in Cotabato Province that chose to join BARMM after a plebiscite in 2019.
Major June Mark Matugas, chief of the Division Public Affairs Office, explained that the troops will mainly supplement the operational requirements of JTF Central in connection with the conduct of the national and local elections in May.
In March, two companies of the Philippine Marines’ MBLT-6 (marine battalion landing team) were deployed to the JTF Central area of operations for election duties and other security-related tasks.
This activity demonstrates JTF Central’s and 6ID’s proactive preparations for the fair, peaceful, and orderly conduct of NLE (national and local elections) 2025 in close collaboration with COMELEC and other security sectors, Matugas pointed out. (With reports from 6ID DPAO)
