ARMM arms 1,117 cops with new guns

MAGUINDANAO, Philippines - The regional police office of Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) will start dispersing on Monday a new Glock 17 pistol each to 1,117 “unarmed” policemen from an initial armament package from Camp Crame.

The ARMM police has jurisdiction over more than 7,000 policemen, mostly assigned in Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur, both in mainland Mindanao, and the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

Chief Supt. Noel Delos Reyes, director of the ARMM police, on Wednesday confirmed to reporters that they received early this week 1,117 units of Glock 17 nine millimeter pistols from their national headquarters in Camp Crame in Quezon City, shipped via the Polloc Port in Parang, Maguindanao.

The regional headquarters of the ARMM police is located inside the 300-hectare Camp S.K. Pendatun in the northwest of Parang, a seaside town in the first district of the province.

“This is a big boost to our crime prevention thrusts,” Delos Reyes said.

The 1,117 Glock 17 pistols were among thousands the Philippine National Police had procured recently to upgrade the firepower of police units serving in different parts of the country.

Delos Reyes said the new firearms will be issued to policemen in the ARMM’s Maguindanao and Lanao del Sur provinces.

Supt. Warren de Leon, logistics director of the ARMM police, said they are expecting another shipment of handguns from Camp Crame for policemen in the island provinces of Basilan, Sulu and Tawi-Tawi.

Tawi-Tawi Governor Nurbert Sahali promised to help facilitate a gun safety seminar for recipient-policemen in towns under his jurisdiction.

De Leon said Sahali, an advocate of responsible gun ownership, wants his constituent-policemen to wear proper uniforms when they carry their new Glock 17 pistols while on duty to win the public's respect and confidence.

Camp Crame's initial firearm shipment for the ARMM police included 31,276 rounds of ammunition, 3,351 spare pistol magazines, and other provisions such as patrol shoes, rappelling equipment and tactical belts.

Meanwhile, Delos Reyes said they will continue with their inventory of firearms issued to policemen in the ARMM provinces to determine who from among them have received multiple service guns.

"These firearms can be retrieved and dispersed to unarmed members of the force," Delos Reyes pointed out.

He said the region-wide audit of firearms is part of a rationalization scheme meant to maximize the distribution of guns to police assigned in the provinces.

The ARMM regional police office had recalled a total of 737 extra firearms in recent months, now being subjected to ballistics testing and documentation processes.

The recalled firearms will be released to unarmed policemen, Delos Reyes said.

Delos Reyes said they are also presently trying to locate more than 300 firearms which recipient-policemen could not account for.

Delos Reyes said corresponding administrative cases will be filed against them if they cannot voluntarily turn over the firearms within a given grace period.

“Our objective here is to ensure that each of our more than 7,000 policemen will have a service firearm,” he said.