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THE recent violence in Butig, Lanao del Sur, including the threat on the Ulamas League in the Lanao provinces, would not deter the conduct of the local and national elections in the area, an election official said Tuesday.

Joseph Hamilton Cuevas, provincial election officer of Misamis Oriental, said it’s unlikely that armed men in Butig, who identified themselves with extremist groups such as the Islamic State and Jemaah Islamiyah, can cause the failure of the May 9 elections in Lanao del Norte.

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Cuevas issued the assurance after the Ulama Alliance in the Lanao provinces had reported last week that the Ulamas were threatened by still unidentified personalities believed to be sowing terrorism in the area.

Cuevas, who was the Lanao del Norte provincial election officer for 11 years, starting in 2004, was optimistic that the presence of the military in the province was deterrent enough for belligerent forces to sabotage the holding of the polls there.

He said that the Army has deployed two mechanized infantry battalions and two infantry battalions to foil any attacks that might disrupt the election process in the province.

Cuevas said that the Commissions on Elections (Comelec), in coordination with the state security forces, was “ready for any contingency.

“Lanao del Norte is very secure. I don’t believe that there will be failure [of elections in elections there this May,” Cuevas said.

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