COTABATO CITY – Armed Forces of the Philippines Chief of Staff Gen. Antonio Nafarrete on Tuesday described the historic Bangsamoro Parliamentary Elections (BPE) as “generally peaceful and successful.”
Nafarrete told reporters on the sidelines of the Regional Board of Canvassing center inside the 6th Infantry Division headquarters that the violence reported before and during the balloting were “isolated cases” and were effectively addressed by the Philippine National Police and the AFP.
He said the exchange of gunshots between government forces and armed men in Shariff Saydona Mustapha, Maguindanao del Sur, “was isolated and was immediately resolved via dialogue.”
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Unfortunately, an elderly man was hit by a stray bullet but is now in stable condition.
On the incident in front of the Cotabato City Sero Elementary School, where supporters of the United Bangsamoro Justice Party (UBJP) destroyed two luxury vehicles owned by supporters of a rival regional party, Nafarrete said the matter was for the police to address.
The UBJP is the political party of the erstwhile rebel group Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF).
“If we look at the whole process (of the elections) in BARMM, it was very successful,” Nafarrete said. “The areas that used to be problematic during elections turned out to be peaceful and orderly, with no major incidents reported.”
“Everything was in place, and everything went well,” Nafarrete said./coa
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