DAVAO CITY (MindaNews / 27 August) – The three-month election gun ban takes effect at 12:01 a.m. on Monday, August 28, the first day of filing of certificates of candidacy for the October 30 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan elections.
Capt. Hazel Tuazon, spokersperson of the Davao City Police Office, told MindaNews on Sunday that the 19 police stations of the DCPO are prepared to implement the gun ban strictly to prevent any violence during the election period.
She said its personnel will be deployed to various checkpoints to monitor the entry of vehicles and ensure that they don’t sneak in firearms into the city.
A member of the Davao City Police Office checks a taxi along Tionko Street in Davao City on Monday, 7 February 2022. The checkpoint is part of the police’s implementation of the election gun ban. The gunban for the October 30, 2023 Barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan Election starts on August 28 and ends on November 29, 2023. MindaNews Photo
Under COMELEC Resolution 10918, the Commission, unless authorized, prohibits the bearing, carrying, or transporting firearms and other deadly weapons outside residence or place of business, and in all public places; employing, availing, or engaging the services of security personnel and bodyguards; and transporting or delivering firearms and explosives, including its parts, ammunition, and/ or components.
The election period is from August 28 until November 29.
According to the Commission on Elections (COMELEC), the filing of certification of candidacy will start on August 28 until September 2, the campaign period from October 19 to 29, and the election on October 30.
Tuazon appealed to Dabawenyos to avoid carrying firearms in public during the ban as she warned that violation of this prohibition will constitute an election
“We ask for the cooperation of the people with firearms to avoid bringing them in public, so that you will not face any charges before the court,” she said.
Section 261 (q) of the Omnibus Election Code penalizes “any person who, although possessing a permit to carry firearms, carries any firearms outside his residence or place of business during the election period, unless authorized in writing by the Commission.”
The COMELEC Resolution also states that a violation of any of the prohibited acts during the election period constitutes an election offense punishable with imprisonment of not less than one year but not more than six years without probation, permanent disqualification to hold public office, and deprivation of the right of suffrage. (Antonio L. Colina IV / MindaNews)
