ILOILO CITY (PNA) — Due to apparently existing intense political rivalry, Iloilo City has joined areas under the Commission on Elections (Comelec’s) Category 1 election watch list.

This decision to include the City in such list was reached during the Joint Security Coordinating Council meeting between Comelec, the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the Philippine National Police (PNP) held at Camp Martin Delgado here Tuesday.

Such move was also made by aforesaid authorities after a grenade was lobbed at the ancestral house of the Treñas family in Barangay Taal, Molo district past 3 a.m. Wednesday. Mayor Jerry P. Trenas’ younger brother, Francis and his family reside in said ancestral house.

The incident happened barely two weeks after a grenade was also thrown at the mayor’s bakeshop in Barangay Dungon, Jaro.

It was fortunate that no member of Francis Treñas’ family was hurt although portions of the ancestral house were damaged by the grenade blast.

The younger Trenas believed that the grenade throwing was politically motivated because his son, Jay, had organized a youth group supporting the congressional bid of Mayor Trenas. The latter is running for Iloilo City’s lone congressional district against Raul Gonzalez, Jr., son of former Justice Secretary and former Presidential Legal Counsel Raul Gonzalez, Sr. in the May elections.

Comelec Regional Director, Atty. Dennis Ausan, however clarified that the action doesn’t have to mean that the two incidents are politically motivated. He said the Philippine National Police (PNP) is still conducting its investigation on the two incidents.

Still, Ausan said that the incidents have already created apprehensions and speculations amongst local folks, thus declaring Iloilo City under Category 1 in the election watch list is necessary so that the PNP can give more focus to the area, particularly where management of its resources are concerned.

To recall, former Mayor Luis Mondia who was a candidate for mayor of Pulupandan, Negros Occidental was also shot dead after attending Ash Wednesday Mass at the Jaro Cathedral here.

Efforts to save his life at the Illoilo Mission Hospital, where he was rushed to after he was shot by gunmen, who are still loose and unidentified, were unsuccessful.

To date, the Comelec has placed 46 local government units (LGUs), including this city, under its watchlist; 24 are under category 1 and 22 are in category 2.

Category 1 means that there is an intense political rivalry in the area and there are election–related incidents happening while LGUs in Category 2 are those where the presence of insurgents are apparent.