Council asks Comelec to revisit gun ban

CEBU City councilors want the Commission on Elections (Comelec) to revisit its gun ban policy, saying that it could jeopardize crime prevention.

The City Council lamented that while the gun ban helps prevent the use of military and police units as private armies by some politicians, it also keeps civilians and some law enforcement officers from responding to crimes since they are not allowed to carry guns.

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Councilor Arsenio Pacaña said this is an obstacle in crime prevention, more so that criminal elements are able to get away with the gun ban violation and make it easy for them to rob and kill their victims.

During its session yesterday, the council passed a resolution condemning the robbery-slay of 14-year-old acolyte Carlo Sacedon Mangitngit in Barangay Guadalupe last Sunday morning.

It also commended Cebu City Police Office (CCPO) officials for the speedy arrest of the three suspects, and urged them to increase police visibility by conducting more checkpoints as a deterrent to crimes.

“The Comelec gun ban also needs to be revisited to take a closer look at its implication in the fight against criminality. Its intention is to prevent the use of police and military units as private armies but in doing so, it created another problem as it reduces the number of police officers who can respond to crime situations,” Pacaña said.

In his privilege speech, he pointed out that the gun ban prohibits law enforcers from carrying firearms when they are off-duty and not in uniform.

“How can they respond to an armed robbery or hold-up? They are willing to put their lives on the line but they are helpless as crime perpetrators are fully armed. The mayor is correct when he said that law-abiding citizens follow the gun ban but criminals don’t,” he continued.

In the same resolution, the council asked the barangays to help prevent crimes by asking their tanods and Barangay Intelligence Network to intensify its intelligence activities in identifying and monitoring the presence of criminal elements.

Councilor Eugenio Faelnar Jr., the Association of Barangay Councils president, lamented that tanods are in a dangerous position even if they learn martial arts because criminal elements are armed.

Councilor Roberto Cabarrubias recalled that in the shooting of the tanod in Barangay Basak Pardo two weeks ago, tanod Danilo Cabaluna could not put up a fight since the robbers he chased were armed and had shot him.

Cabaluna died last Tuesday night.