The Philippine National Police (PNP) on Thursday said the implementation of “Oplan Katok” will continue as part of normal police operations going to the May elections, clarifying that the campaign was not meant to harass anyone.
PNP chief Gen. Rommel Francisco Marbil said the drive involved police visits to homes of registered gun owners with expired licenses to remind them to renew their permits and to surrender the firearms while the registration is being processed.
Firearms with expired licenses are considered loose and could put the delinquent owners in legal troubles.
“This (Oplan Katok) is a normal PNP duty. The purpose is to account for all the firearms because the cause of violence is firearms,” Marbil told reporters on the sidelines of the PNP Day celebration in Camp Crame, Quezon City.
Marbil issued the clarification after Commission on Elections (Comelec) chairman George Garcia said the campaign could be used to intimidate candidates and voters ahead of the May polls.
“We only knock at the doors of owners of unregistered firearms. We do not visit all houses. I’ll discuss it with the chairman because this is part of the normal police duty. Its purpose is to really account (for) all the firearms (in private hands),” Marbil said.
He said the PNP is concerned over the proliferation of loose firearms, including those with expired licenses and those lost by the owners that can be actually used in violent activities going to the elections.
In 2023, the PNP reported that there are more than 500,000 firearms with expired licenses in the country.
PNP spokesperson Brig. Gen. Jean Fajardo said they would meet with Comelec officials next week to discuss the matter.
Meanwhile, the PNP installed gun checkpoints to ferret out loose firearms during the election period from Jan. 12 to June 11.