(Photo courtesy of PNA)
ILOILO CITY – The Iloilo Police Provincial Office (IPPO) has accounted for 1,312 firearms with expired licenses as part of an intensified campaign to reduce gun-related incidents in Western Visayas.
The firearms were recorded under Project Restrict, Track and Turn-in (RTT) 3389 of the Police Regional Office in Western Visayas (PRO-6), specifically its Accounting and Disposition of Firearms with Expired Registration component.
Authorities said the firearms were deposited at local police stations for safekeeping while awaiting renewal of their registrations.
The firearms were presented during a ceremony at the IPPO headquarters Tuesday, alongside 305 loose firearms recovered from the province’s second district.
Iloilo Provincial Administrator Raul Banias said Project RTT 3389 is among the police initiatives aimed at strengthening public safety and reducing shooting incidents across the region.
Citing data from PRO-6 Director Brig. Gen. Randulf Tuaño, Banias said shooting incidents in Western Visayas have declined by nearly 50 percent since the campaign began.
“This campaign works because it recognizes a fundamental reality: A police force alone cannot patrol every corner, but a united community can,” Banias said.
He credited barangay officials for helping authorities identify firearms with expired registrations and local government leaders for encouraging residents to voluntarily surrender loose firearms.
“It takes the courage of our community stakeholders to say enough is enough,” he added.
During the ceremony, Banias, Tuaño and IPPO Director Bayani Razalan presented certificates of recognition to mayors and Liga ng mga Barangay presidents from Alimodian, Leganes, Leon, New Lucena, Pavia, San Miguel, Santa Barbara and Zarraga for their support of the campaign.
The event also included the conferment of Performance Governance System Proficient Status on the 601st, 602nd and 603rd maneuver companies of the Regional Mobile Force Battalion.
Police officials emphasized the importance of cooperation between law enforcement agencies, local governments and communities in addressing the proliferation of loose firearms and improving peace and order in Iloilo and the rest of Western Visayas.
