DURING the ongoing nationwide gun ban for the upcoming Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Elections (BSKE) on Oct. 30, 2023, the Mandaue City Police (MCPO) arrested 12 individuals possessing expired or unlicensed firearms.
Lieutenant Colonel Franco Rudolf Oriol, the MCPO deputy city director for administration and spokesperson, on Friday, Oct. 6, said the violators were apprehended at various checkpoints in Mandaue during the gun ban in effect since Aug. 28.
Based on the MCPO data, they confiscated a total of 14 firearms from Aug. 28 to Oct. 6. These are nine .38 revolvers, three caliber 357, and two caliber 22, all with either expired or no licenses.
Oriol said the violators are now detained at the Mandaue Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) facility and will face charges for illegal possession of firearms, a violation under Republic Act 10591, and violation of provisions of the Omnibus Election Code, which prohibits the unauthorized carrying or transporting of firearms and deadly weapons outside residences, businesses and public places during an election period.
The gun ban ends on Nov. 29.
BSKE preparation
Meanwhile, Oriol said 490 of the MCPO’s 640 total police personnel will be deployed in polling precincts starting Oct. 29 until the BSKE on Oct. 30 officially concludes.
Oriol said they might also send at least 100 police personnel to man the local elections in the neighboring provinces, particularly in election hotspots, such as some barangays in Negros Oriental and Bohol.
However, he said they are still awaiting an official order from the Police Regional Office in Central Visayas.
He clarified that Mandaue is among those areas in the green zone, or “election safe,” with no barangays for concern as categorized by the Philippine National Police.
Despite that, Oriol said they continue to monitor the city’s 27 barangays, particularly those with large voting populations, such as Paknaan, Canduman and Pagsabungan.
“So tanang barangay nato wala tay gitan-aw nga election concern, pero sa gihapun ipadayon gihapon ta nag evaluate, validate, ug pagbantay sa mga barangay ilabi na sa umaabot nga election. So far peaceful ang ato diri wala pa man tay nadawat nga reports sa mga incidents related to the upcoming election,” said Oriol.
(We do not see any election concerns in all our barangays, but we have been evaluating, validating and monitoring the barangays, especially for the upcoming election. So far, we have been peaceful here. We have not received any reports of incidents related to the upcoming election.)
Campaign period
Oriol said they would only deploy security personnel during the campaign period upon the request of candidates to cover their rallies, meetings and other political activities.
He assured that the MCPO is closely monitoring all election-related activities to ensure the city’s safety. According to the Commission on Elections, the campaign period will run from Oct. 19 to 28.