President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Tuesday ordered the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) to ensure the peaceful and orderly conduct of elections next year.

“The most immediate here is the elections,” Marcos said in a sectoral meeting on Tuesday at the Malacanan Palace.

During the meeting, Interior and Local Government Secretary Juanito Victor Remulla told the President that a special meeting between concerned agencies such as the Commission of Elections (Comelec), the Department of National Defense (DND), the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the DILG will be held on Nov. 15 to discuss the measures for the Chief Executive’s directive.

The President’s order came amid reports that some areas in the country have cases of violence.

However, these cases were not confirmed if they are election-related.

Meanwhile, the President said he wanted to speak to the families and the leadership of the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) for peaceful and orderly polls.

“Magtanong na rin tayo sa mga magiging leadership ng BARMM. We can ask the chief minister what he thinks,” Marcos said.

“Same thing, we talk to the families. We talk to the families what they think. I’m interested to hear what they have to say. Hindi pa natin sila kinokonsulta about this,” the President added.

Remulla said they are coordinating with all concerned government agencies including the PNP and the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) to ensure no election-related violence occurs. Presidential News Desk