Manila Bulletin
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Barangay execs, other elected officials urged to renew gun licenses as elections draw near
Philippines
National
Barangay execs, other elected officials urged to renew gun licenses as elections draw near
Barangay execs, other elected officials urged to renew gun licenses as elections draw near
Published Jun 20, 2023 08:03 am
The Philippine National Police (PNP) called on elected officials to renew the license of their firearms amid the government’s aggressive drive to account for loose firearms as part of the security preparations for the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.
Police Brig. Gen. Benjamin Silo, Jr., director of the PNP’s Civil Security Group (CSG), said that elected officials should serve as role models in ensuring that laws are followed like the regular registration of firearms.
Citing their data, Silo said there are around 30,000 firearms registered to elected officials—a total of 8,313 of them have expired licenses. He added that around 50 percent of those guns with expired licenses belong to barangay officials.
Police Brig. Gen. Benjamin Silo, Jr., director, PNP-Civil Security Group
“What we are doing in the CSG is to provide extra efforts to encourage these people to have their expired licenses renewed in the soonest possible time,” said Silo. “For the barangay officials concerned, we will be coordinating with the Barangay Affairs of the Department of the Interior and Local Government for them to help us encourage these barangay officials to renew the license of their firearms especially that we are heading to the barangay and SK elections this October,” he added. Based on the PNP data, there are around 2.1 million registered firearms in the country, around 500,000 of them have expired licenses. In an effort to encourage more gun owners to register and renew the licenses of their guns, the CSG has started opening its offices across the country, including satellite offices in malls, during weekends. Another measure that they would resort to in order for barangay officials to renew their gun licenses , according to Silo, is to submit the list of their names to the Commission on Elections. But Silo emphasized the obligation of the barangay officials to comply with the provisions of the Republic Act 10591 that pertains to gun ownership. “As government officials, they should take the lead in complying with the provisions of the law. They should serve as role models in abiding by the law,” said Silo. The risks Guns with expired licenses are considered as loose firearms and ownership of loose guns could result in prison terms. Silo explained that the police could also apply for search warrant against delinquent gun owners. Those who are seeking reelections for the October barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, if caught with guns ith expired licenses, may also found themselves in trouble. Security preparations Philippine National Police chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda, Jr. has already instructed all police commanders to find ways to reduce the number of loose firearms and those with expired licenses as part of the security preparations for the October elections. “Our Chief PNP is very concerned, he wants to reduce to the lowest number possible the loose firearms in the country before the barangay and SK elections,” said Silo.
Police Brig. Gen. Benjamin Silo, Jr., director, PNP-Civil Security Group
“What we are doing in the CSG is to provide extra efforts to encourage these people to have their expired licenses renewed in the soonest possible time,” said Silo. “For the barangay officials concerned, we will be coordinating with the Barangay Affairs of the Department of the Interior and Local Government for them to help us encourage these barangay officials to renew the license of their firearms especially that we are heading to the barangay and SK elections this October,” he added. Based on the PNP data, there are around 2.1 million registered firearms in the country, around 500,000 of them have expired licenses. In an effort to encourage more gun owners to register and renew the licenses of their guns, the CSG has started opening its offices across the country, including satellite offices in malls, during weekends. Another measure that they would resort to in order for barangay officials to renew their gun licenses , according to Silo, is to submit the list of their names to the Commission on Elections. But Silo emphasized the obligation of the barangay officials to comply with the provisions of the Republic Act 10591 that pertains to gun ownership. “As government officials, they should take the lead in complying with the provisions of the law. They should serve as role models in abiding by the law,” said Silo. The risks Guns with expired licenses are considered as loose firearms and ownership of loose guns could result in prison terms. Silo explained that the police could also apply for search warrant against delinquent gun owners. Those who are seeking reelections for the October barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections, if caught with guns ith expired licenses, may also found themselves in trouble. Security preparations Philippine National Police chief Gen. Benjamin Acorda, Jr. has already instructed all police commanders to find ways to reduce the number of loose firearms and those with expired licenses as part of the security preparations for the October elections. “Our Chief PNP is very concerned, he wants to reduce to the lowest number possible the loose firearms in the country before the barangay and SK elections,” said Silo.