ILOILO City – A total of 69 individuals have been arrested for violating the Commission on Elections (Comelec) gun ban in Western Visayas, including a police officer and a soldier, according to the Police Regional Office 6 (PRO-6).
Authorities also confiscated 68 firearms in the operations, which are part of the region’s continuing enforcement efforts amid the 2025 midterm election period. Of the seized weapons, four were confirmed to be replicas.
PRO-6 data shows Iloilo province recorded the highest number of arrests with 27 violators, followed by Capiz with 16; Iloilo City, 7; Antique, 8; Aklan, 4; Guimaras, 4; and the Regional Mobile Force Battalion 6 (RMFB-6) with 3.
“Despite our continuous information dissemination efforts, some gun holders remain defiant,” said Lieutenant Colonel Arnel Solis, PRO-6 spokesperson. “We have been consistent in reminding the public that the Comelec gun ban is in effect in relation to the 2025 elections.”
Among the most recent violators were two men arrested for firing their weapons in Barangay Poblacion, Laua-an, Antique around 5:39 p.m. Thursday, May 15. The suspects, identified only by their aliases “Jimboy,” 40, a tricycle driver, and “Francis,” 39, both residents of Laua-an, were taken into police custody.
PRO-6 director Police Brigadier General Jack Wanky lauded law enforcement’s vigilance and called on the public to cooperate.
“We urge everyone to voluntarily surrender undocumented firearms to the nearest police station. The gun ban remains in effect until June 11, 2025,” Wanky said.
The Comelec gun ban covers the election period leading up to the 2025 national and local polls. It prohibits the unauthorized bearing, carrying, or transporting of firearms and other deadly weapons./PN
