COMELEC GUN BAN. Some of the evidence seized from nine violators of the Commission on Elections (Comelec) ban on firearms and deadly weapons who were arrested in Negros Oriental as of Feb. 1, 2022. The suspects were arrested either at checkpoints or during police response operations. (Photo courtesy of the Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office) DUMAGUETE CITY - The Negros Oriental Provincial Police Office (NOPPO) on Friday reported that nine persons have been arrested across the province since the ban on the carrying of firearms and other deadly weapons was imposed by the Commission on Elections (Comelec) in connection with the May 9 polls. Lt. Col. Ruben Verbo, Jr., head of the Police Community Affairs and Development Unit (PCADU) and public information officer of NOPPO, told the Philippine News Agency in an interview that the suspects were arrested either at a checkpoint or during a police response operations. The weapons seized between January 10 and February 1 were six firearms
COMELEC-PNP CHECKPOINTS. A police officer stands at the roadside at this random checkpoint in Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental. Police stations are asked to conduct random as well as static checkpoints daily as the May 9, 2022 national and local elections draw nearer. (Photo by Judy Flores Partlow) DUMAGUETE CITY - Police stations in the different towns and cities in Negros Oriental are now required to conduct random checkpoints twice a day to deter the commission of crimes as the May 9 national and local elections draw nearer. Provincial police director, Col. Germano Mallari, on Tuesday said the random checkpoints are on top of the ones being jointly conducted by the Philippine National Police (PNP) and the Commission on Elections (Comelec) after the election period started last January 9. "These random checkpoints are movable, depending on the locations identified by the police chiefs every day, because stationary ones can be easily avoided, especially by traffic violators,"