ZAMBOANGA CITY — Saying unfastened firearms might distort the upcoming village polls, Basilan Gov. Jim Hataman-Salliman known as on native authorities officers within the province to assist authorities persuade neighborhood folks to show of their unlicensed weapons to the federal government.
Hataman mentioned the standard of the electoral final result “will be gravely affected” if weapons may very well be deployed simply by these working for posts within the village polls.
“If there are still guns during the barangay election, the quality of the (Bangsamoro) peace process will also be put into question,” Salliman added.
Salliman was referring to the normalization program contained within the peace settlement between the federal government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) that was signed in 2014.
Under the peace deal, the MILF has to decommission 40,000 former combatants of its armed wing, the Bangsamoro Islamic Armed Forces (BIAF), and switch in to the Turkiye-led Independent Decommissioning Body over 7,000 weapons so these may very well be put past use.
Parallel to the BIAF’s decommissioning, the nationwide authorities, via the Office of the Presidential Adviser on Peace, Reconciliation, and Unity launched the Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) program that seeks to siphon off the unfastened firearms from most of the people.
Salliman, who was amongst those that known as for fast-tracking the disbandment of the BIAF, lauded the Lantawan native authorities for serving to gather unfastened firearms.
Last Monday, Lantawan Mayor Nursiya Ismael handed over 34 unlicensed weapons to the Army’s nineteenth Special Forces Company in Isabela City, bringing the surrendered weapons within the province to 404 since 2020 beneath the SALW program.
The program, Salliman famous, had stenciled 4,323 weapons, which implies these had been rendered unserviceable.
This is nearly the identical quantity because the weapons turned in, up to now, by the BIAF, which is concentrated largely in Maguindanao, Lanao del Sur, and Lanao del Norte provinces.
Salliman mentioned their aim was to make Basilan freed from unfastened weapons.
Unidentified people from completely different villages of Lantawan turned over the weapons, which included two M16 rifles, one grenade launcher, 4 Garand rifles, one Carbine rifle, 5 shotguns, two .45 pistols, 14 caliber .38 pistols, one 9mm, one KG9 rifle, one .357 pistol, and two .22 pistols.
The army didn’t point out how the unidentified people acquired the weapons.
Colonel Frederick Sales, deputy commander of the Army’s one hundred and first Brigade in Basilan, attributed the accomplishment to the collaborative efforts of the 4th Special Forces Battalion beneath Lieutenant Colonel Bernard Samin and the municipal authorities of Lantawan.
Sales mentioned the turned-over firearms had been deposited at an Army camp for safekeeping whereas ready to be stenciled.
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