AMPATUAN (Philippines) Three grenade blasts shattered the muezzin's nightly call to prayer in the troubled Muslim-dominated province of Maguindanao in the southern Philippines ahead of national elections.

An armoured carrier quickly raced into the darkness while troops fanned out across a corn field to hunt for the source of the explosions that wounded two people and were blamed on a typical local rivalry that makes Philippine politics a bloodsport.

In areas such as Maguindanao, where politicians openly brag about their impressive array of weapons and private armies, deadly feuds among rivals go with the territory of public office.

“Violence during elections is rooted in our failure to control these armed groups operated by politicians that perpetuate the gun culture,” said Rommel Banlaoi, head of the Philippine Institute for Peace, Violence and Terrorism Research.

“There have been a lot of small bombings happening in the final week before the election. Harassment by armed goons controlled by politicians against communities are also up.” Tensions are particularly high in Maguindanao, where 57 people were killed in a massacre in November as the Muslim clan that dominated politics in the province allegedly sought to eliminate a rival's election challenge.

The military has deployed over 4,000 soldiers in Maguindanao, leading to a drop in large-scale attacks, although security forces warn there will likely be violence on election day.

“We are all peaceful here. But we also have guns. If I am attacked then I will retaliate,” one local politician belonging to an influential Muslim family who did not want to be named told AFP.

“It's a case of who gets who first,” said the politician, who is seeking re-election as mayor of one of the 36 towns in Maguindanao but is also engaged in a running blood feud with a relative.

Compounding the situation is the Philippines' myriad security problems, from a festering communist insurgency that has increasingly turned into extortion targeting politicians to Muslim rebels and Al Qaeda-linked militants.

Security officials have said all these groups could stage sabotage attacks to take advantage of the chaos as an estimated 40 million voters choose a president and thousands of local officials on Monday.

Banlaoi said that, based on his group's own tracking, 102 people have so far been killed in the run-up to the elections, including the Maguindanao massacre.

As more blood is likely to spill within days after the polls, the Philippines is on track to surpass the 189 people killed in the last presidential elections six years ago, he said.

He said that over 70 private armed groups continue to terrorise voters and communities across the country, despite a nationwide military and police crackdown ordered in the wake of the massacre.

Amnesty International, in a report released ahead of the election, said among those killed this year were at least five candidates for local posts and 16 campaign organisers.

International observers who arrived in the south ahead of the polls stressed it was crucial for the country to stem the bloodshed and conduct credible elections.—AFP