Only Cebu City Hall employees tasked to secure city-owned properties and aid police in maintaining peace and order will be prioritized in the issuance of government-owned firearms.
This came after the Cebu City government received directives from the Philippine National Police (PNP) to prohibit issuing firearms to elected public officials during the barangay and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) elections.
Ronald Malacora, chief of Cebu City Hall’s Department of General Services that takes custody of city-owned firearms, said in a press briefing that he will consult Cebu City Mayor Tomas Osmeña on this directive.
“They (PNP) cited the latest law on government-issued firearms will not allow elected officials to possess them. I will talk with the mayor further about this,” said Malacora.
He said only 180 of the 400 city-owned firearms were renewed since January since they were registered in the police database.