BACOLOD CITY — Some 22 gun owners in Negros Occidental surrendered their loose firearms to various police stations over the weekend, as part of the Police Regional Office-6’s “Tokhang Kontra Guinadili-an nga Pusil” campaign in Western Visayas.
Reports from the Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office showed that 17 firearms with expired licenses were turned over by their owners on Friday while seven others were recorded on Saturday.
The police here earlier urged gun owners to surrender their loose firearms for safekeeping while they are processing the renewal of their gun registration and license to own and possess firearm.
Based on the report as of August 10, a total of 12 firearms were surrendered by 10 owners in Sipalay City while there were two in Pulupandan.
One firearm was turned over to the police in La Carlota City, one in Sagay City, and one in Silay.
On August 11, seven firearms were turned over for safekeeping as well, including four in Sagay City, one in Silay City, one in Sipalay City, and one in Pontevedra.
The “Tokhang Kontra Guinadili-an nga Pusil,” which was launched last month, involves an information operation for loose firearms during house-to-house visits, or visits in public and private places or areas of convergence.
In Negros Occidental, the police seized 183 loose firearms from January to July this year.
These include 120 confiscated seized in various police operations while 63 were surrendered by the owners while they are processing the renewal of their firearms licenses.
Senior Supt. Rodolfo Castil, police provincial director, presented the said firearms in a press conference last August 6.
Castil called on residents of Negros Occidental who still possess unlicensed firearms to surrender their guns to the police first to avoid being the subject of search operations. (Nanette Guadalquiver/PNA)
