Ex-soldiers running for mayor in Pag-asa island’s Kalayaan town

MANILA, Philippines — Two former soldiers will again be pitted against each other in the mayoral elections in Kalayaan town in the Philippine-claimed Kalayaan Group of Islands.

It will be a two-cornered fight between Mayor Roberto del Mundo, a former Air Force officer, and Rodrigo Jaca, a former Navy commander.

Jaca and former mayor Eugenio Bito-onon lost to Del Mundo in the 2016 elections.

Del Mundo is former chairman of Barangay Pag-Asa, the lone barangay in Kalayaan, which has around 300 civilian residents, including children.

Both Jaca and Del Mundo have been assigned in Kalayaan.

The town has 229 registered voters. Two thirds of these voters are staying in mainland Palawan and other parts of the country, including Mindanao, Iloilo and Mindoro.

A local court dismissed petitions not to allow voters who are no longer residents of the island town from participating in local elections.