BY RUBY P. SILUBRICO & JEN BAYLON
ILOILO City – The Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6) arrested 139 persons across Western Visayas as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) gun ban ended on Nov. 29.
Of the 139 violators, 132 were civilians, four were security guards, two belonged to Other Law Enforcement Agencies, and one was a member of the Philippine National Police.
PRO-6 records showed that since the gun ban implementation on Aug. 28, there have been 110 firearms, 48 deadly weapons, 438 ammunition, and two explosives recovered.
Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (PPO) had the most gun ban violators arrested with 40, followed by Iloilo Police Provincial Office with 25 and Bacolod City Police Office with 18.
Capiz PPO had 17 arrests; Iloilo City Police Office had 16, including the police officer who had no letter of exemption from the Comelec; Aklan PPO had 11; and Guimaras PPO, Antique PPO, and the Regional Mobile Force Battalion had four arrests each.
Police Regional Office 6 director Brigadier General Sidney Villaflor congratulated the troops for the strict implementation of the Comelec gun ban until its last day.
“Masaya po akong ibahagi sa ating mga kababayan na sa kabuuan po ay naging maayos, ligtas, mapayapa, at malaya ang katatapos lamang na 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections. May mga naitala man po tayong mga hindi sumunod sa ating ipinatupad na batas, pero kakaunti po ang porsyento nito. Patunay lang po ito ng dedikasyon at striktong implementasyon ng ating mga batas at dahil na din sa kooperasyon ng lahat,” Villaflor said./PN
