Manila: The Police Regional Office in Northern Mindanao (PRO-10) reassured its personnel on Friday that their voting rights will be fully respected, even as the region remains under heightened alert status 10 days before the elections. Maj. Joann Navarro, PRO-10 spokesperson, clarified that while police officers are not prohibited from voting, those deployed to areas outside their registered voting locations, such as the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), were required to utilize the Local Absentee Voting (LAV) system established by the Commission on Elections.

According to Philippines News Agency, Navarro emphasized that eligible personnel who are assigned outside their areas of responsibility, including the contingent in the BARMM, have already availed themselves of the LAV. Navarro's statement addressed online misinformation suggesting that police officers would be unable to vote on election day unless they applied for LAV.

Additional police contingents from Regions 12 (Soccsksargen) and 13 (Caraga) have been deployed to Lanao del Sur province to serve as members of the Special Electoral Boards. In a separate development, the Lanao del Sur Provincial Police Office, through its station in the municipality of Maguing, has initiated an investigation into the alleged physical assault of 20 individuals in Barangay Batobato on April 30. Local police said they are exploring all possible angles, including election-related violence, as the perpetrators were reportedly armed.