The Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (NOCPPO) announced that a gun ban and checkpoints for the May 12 Senatorial and Local Elections will start on Jan. 12, the start of the election period.
The COMELEC gun ban will start Jan. 12 and will end June 11 where carrying firearms and other deadly weapons in public will be prohibited, the NOCPPO said.
With the gun ban, carrying of firearms and deadly weapons outside residences or places of business, and in all public places will not be allowed, as well as engaging the services of security personnel or bodyguards, and transporting of firearms and parts.
The Committee on the Ban on Firearms and Security Concerns (CBFSC), has the sole and exclusive authority to issue Certificates of Authority authorizing the bearing, carrying, or transporting of firearms or other deadly weapons, the NOCPPO said.
Imprisonment of 1 to 6 years, permanent disqualification from public office and loss of right to vote, and deportation of foreigners are among the penalties that can be imposed on gun ban violators, the NOCPPO added.
NOCPPO Spokesperson Capt. Judesses Catalogo said on Jan. 12 simultaneous checkpoints will be conducted by all police stations in the province.*