ILOILO – Starting Monday the Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) will enforce its two-pronged campaign against loose firearms.
The IPPO expects “Tokhang Kontra Armas-Luthang” to “neutralize private armed groups and motorcycle riding-in-tandem suspects,” said spokeswoman Senior Police Officer 2 Gregoria Antonano.
Antonano said the campaign has two approaches.
The “soft hand” approach involves house-to-house visits and information drive.
Under the “iron hand” approach, “those with loose firearms will be targeted for police operations through search warrants,” she said.
Moreover, the campaign will help the IPPO account for all firearms with expired licenses or not registered, and compel their owners to process the registration, said Antonano.
The one-month campaign “is expected to reduce incidents involving loose firearms and allay the people’s fear,” she said.
Crimes involving loose firearms in Iloilo province dropped to 87 in the first half of this year from 116 in the same period last year, Antonano noted. (With a report from PNA/PN)
