BACOLOD CITY – The two-day filing of certificate of candidacy (CoC) for the June 2 special election for congressional seat in the Fifth District of Negros Occidental starts today.

The district's congressional post has been declared vacant by the House of Representatives after Rep. Ignacio Arroyo succumbed to a liver ailment last January.

The Fifth District covers the towns of Moises Padilla, La Castellana, Isabela, Hinigaran, Binalbagan, and Himamaylan City,

Expected to file their CoCs are Binalbagan Mayor Alejandro Mirasol, who recently joined the Liberal Party, and his nephew, Board Member Emilio Yulo III, a member of the Nationalista Party.

The filing is set from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. today and tomorrow, from 8 a.m. to 12 midnight.

The CoCs will be received at the Office of the Provincial Election Supervisor of the Province of Negros Occidental headed by Atty. Jessie Suarez.

The official campaign period will start on May 17.

During a joint security meeting last week, the military and police announced that they will deploy more than 1,000 policemen and military personnel to ensure a peaceful and orderly election on June 2.

Thirty-eight polling precincts have been categorized as difficult to reach due to inaccessibility of transportation.

The police will assign its 700 personnel to man the 117 polling precincts, and secure its outside perimeters while the military will deploy 500 soldiers to reinforce the policemen.*NLG