By Mariela Angella Oladive
With the May 2025 midterm elections approaching, the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) has assured the public it has sufficient personnel to maintain peace and order across Western Visayas.
PRO-6 Regional Director Brig. Gen. Jack Wanky said the region will not require additional police forces from neighboring provinces, including Negros Occidental.
He noted that newly graduated police officers will be deployed to support election-related duties.
“For now, we have a considerable number of personnel that I think will be enough for deployment in Region 6,” Wanky said during a press conference after the final Regional Joint Security Coordinating Center (RJSCC) meeting.
“We don’t need to import from Negros Occidental—we have new graduates that we will be utilizing for this election. I don’t have the exact number, but we have more than enough,” he added.
The assurance comes as security planning intensifies for the May 12 elections, the first national and local polls under the newly created Negros Island Region (NIR).
The NIR, composed of Negros Occidental, Negros Oriental, and Siquijor, was signed into law in June 2024 and has introduced new administrative and logistical arrangements, including police deployment.
PRO-6 now covers only Aklan, Antique, Capiz, Guimaras, Iloilo province, and Iloilo City.
With its streamlined jurisdiction, the command is focused on maximizing police visibility, particularly in polling centers and other critical areas throughout the region.
