Military boosts drive vs guns in BARMM

ILLEGAL WEAPONS Philippine Army chief Lt. Gen. Roy Galido (second from right) checks the loose firearms that were seized and collected by the military through law enforcement operations in its area of operation in the Bangsamoro and Soccsksargen (South Cotabato, Cotabato, Sultan Kudarat, Sarangani, General Santos) regions. —Photo courtesy of the 6th Infantry Division

COTABATO CITY, BARMM, Philippines — The top Philippine Army official has directed the 6th Infantry Division (6ID) to intensify law enforcement operations against loose firearms in its area of responsibility, noting that more are still in the hands of unauthorized people in mainland Mindanao.

Lt. Gen. Roy Galido, the Army commander, inspected on Tuesday a total of 1,031 assorted firearms, including mortar launchers and .50 caliber machine guns that the Army battalions and other support units under the 6ID have confiscated, recovered, and received through surrenders starting July last year.

This means that three to four weapons fell into the hands of authorities every day in the last nine months, boosting the government’s drive against loose firearms, especially in provinces under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM).

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The government had taken efforts to reduce the opportunities for violence in the run-up to the midterm elections on May 12, and in the longer run as part of the outcomes of the peace deals it forged with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in 2014 and the Moro National Liberation Front in 1996.

Maj. Gen. Donald Gumiran, 6ID commander, said the firearms were recovered through relentless military and law enforcement operations in the provinces of Maguindanao del Norte, Maguindanao del Sur, Sultan Kudarat, and South Cotabato, and in parts of Cotabato and Sarangani provinces.

TIGHTER SECURITY In this photo taken last month, members of the Marine Battalion Landing Team man a Commission on Elections checkpoint set up along a major street in Cotabato City to implement the election gun ban. —Photo courtesy of First Marine Brigade

Critical role

Of the total, 761 firearms were seized during military operations, while 270 were collected under the Small and Light Weapons (SALW) management program.

Among the recovered firearms, some were used by New People’s Army rebels.

Galido stressed the critical role of disarming “threat groups” to ensure lasting peace and security in the region.

But he ordered the military to further intensify its effort in the provinces of Maguindanao del Sur and Maguindanao del Norte, where the outlawed Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters and Dawlah Islamiya terrorist groups continue to operate and maintain lairs.

“This achievement is a testament to our unwavering commitment to eliminating the tools of violence that threaten the peace and development of our nation,” said Galido, who led the 6ID in 2022.

He said the Army will continue collaborating with other military units and groups to sustain the momentum.

Amid these developments, Lt. Col. Roden Orbon, 6ID spokesperson, said they were confident that communist rebels would no longer be capable of doing sabotage operations against the midterm elections, like imposing, for one, so-called permit-to-campaign fees on local candidates.

Meanwhile, the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation and Unity noted the continuing success in the campaign to address the proliferation of unregistered weapons in the BARMM.

On March 25, the Joint Normalization Committee (JNC) and the Army’s 603rd Infantry Brigade received 14 assorted loose firearms surrendered by civilians in Upi town, Maguindanao del Sur.

The weapons were surrendered through the efforts of the Joint Peace and Security Team (JPST) in the area. A JPST is composed of police officers, soldiers and former MILF fighters that provide security cover in a former rebel stronghold community.

Ariel Hernandez, chair of the government’s JNC contingent, said the effort was a major boost to the SALW program, which had gathered the strong support of local government officials, apart from those in the security sector.