NEGROS OCCIDENTAL (PIA) –- The Commission on Elections inaugurates new two-storey building office in Manapla town.

COMELEC Commissioner and Negrense lawyer Rowena Guanzon with Manapla mayor Manuel Escalante III led the inauguration of the building which houses the Office of the Election Officer, records room, conference room as well as the office of the Persons with Disability Affairs Office (PDAO).

Guanzon, in her message during the inauguration, said that since the election time is approaching, she prays for a violence-free elections in the province.

“May this election, the people will be free to vote who they want to vote without violence and without fraud,” Guanzon said.

She also thanked Escalante and Kusog Tausug partylist Representative Shernee Tan for facilitating the fruition of the project.

“It is an honor for COMELEC to run the elections from the Presidential level down to the local level, with its personnel not involved in anomalies,” she added.

Meanwhile, Manapla town Election Officer Claudine Joyce Ballesteros said they are happy with the new conducive working environment that inspires them to better serve their clients.

According to Ballesteros, the new office is a big boost as COMELEC- Manapla also prepares to be the first to utilize geographic information system (GIS) in monitoring the upcoming elections.

“This is a first in the Government-Citizen partnership building for GIS-guided election monitoring at the local level,” she said. *(EAD-PIA6 Negros Occidenal)