Drive vs. PAGs, loose weapons are PRO8’s top priority – Soria

By RPCRD, Police Regional Office 8
November 13, 2012

CAMP SEC. RUPERTO K. KANGLEON, Palo, Leyte  –  Vowing to ensure a peaceful and orderly 2013 midterm elections, the region’s top police official has ordered his men to step up their investigation of individuals who may be employing “partisan armed groups,” particularly those with links to some politicians, and to spare no one in their campaign against PAGs and loose weapons.

“We are cross-checking and ironing all the information that we could get on these aspects to make the 2013 elections peaceful and credible,” Police Chief Superintendent Elmer Ragadio Soria, PRO8 regional director said.

“Among the critical factors are the possible employments of the PAGs being cuddled by politicians and loose firearms. We are reviewing the assessment of our intelligence units, records of poll-related violence in the past elections and consolidating the operational targets,” Soria added.

The police regional director disclosed that at least two remaining PAGs are being monitored by his office as they also aimed to neutralize them before the campaign period. He added that he ordered his field commanders to conduct a stepped up crackdown on PAGs and to continue the massive drive against loose firearms across the region that may be used as an “instrument of violence” during the 2013 polls.

Since assuming post as the region’s top cop, Soria ordered a massive drive against them which saw the Joint Special Operations Task Group on PAGs smashing a number of suspected members. At least four positive police operations resulted in the arrest of 3 members of one group, including Samar’s Most Wanted criminal, and also one member from the other group. All four suspects have pending arrest warrants for murder.

“While there are no monitored activities by PAGs in the region as of this time, continuous monitoring is being undertaken by our men as they maybe recommissioned by some politicians to be utilized in the coming elections,” Soria said, adding that remaining members with existing arrest warrants are subject for neutralization and he hopes the police would eventually dismantle them.

Aside from conducting assessment and monitoring on the existence of PAGs, Soria also already directed his men to religiously implement checkpoint operations and conduct random checkpoints as part of the measures to control the proliferation of loose firearms and constrain the movement of PAGs.

“The conduct of random checkpoints has been proven to be an effective formula in running after PAGs, that is included in our security plan for the elections,” Soria averred, adding that this initiative would be part of the police effort to safeguard the elections.

PRO8 is also making political and security assessment particularly focusing in areas where there have been election-related violent incidents due to existence of intense partisan political rivalries and lawless groups in the past elections.