Amnesty set for illegal gun holders

By Freddie Lazaro

LAOAG CITY – Amnesty period for illegal gun holders will start on Oct. 1
Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno bared this urging gun holders in Ilocos provinces to avail of the one-month amnesty for registration of unlicensed firearms.

Puno aired the appeal to tholders of loose guns when he was a guest of honor and speaker during the Region 1 Peace and Order Council meeting here July 22.

The secretary said the Philippine National Police has estimated the number of loose firearms in the country at 1.2 million.

These are in the hands of organized crime groups, the New People's Army, and the general population, he said.

“These loose firearms are part of the crime problem because these firearms have largely contributed to the rising number of crimes in the country,” Puno said.

The secretary expressed hope over the reduction in the number of unlicensed guns by 50 percent with the issuance of Executive Order 817 which authorizes the gun amnesty for the period of from Oct. 1 to 31, this year.

Meanwhile, regional police director Chief Supt. Ramon V. Gatan reported that the Philippines ranked 10th in the world in the number of homicide cases, 97.7 percent of which were committed with loose firearms.

In the Ilocos Region, the police said there are 26,864 unregistered firearms in the hands of “threat groups,” criminal elements and civilians.

Shooting incidents remained a major police concern in the four Ilocos provinces due to the presence of hired guns and loose firearms.