COTABATO CITY — The police detained a mayor of a newly created Bangsamoro town and his three escorts after policemen and soldiers in a gun ban checkpoint in Toril, Davao City found two pistols in their vehicle on Tuesday.
Anwar D. Saluang, an appointed mayor of Nabalawag town under the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM), which is within Cotabato province, and his escorts were on their way to the Davao City proper when policemen and soldiers at the checkpoint discovered they were in possession of two undocumented handguns.
Officials of the Toril Police Station and the Police Regional Office-11 told reporters on Wednesday, February 5, that Mr. Saluang and his companions failed to show to policemen at the checkpoint a clearance from the Commission on Elections (Comelec) that allows them to carry the confiscated guns outside of their residences.
Comelec’s nationwide ban on carrying firearms outside houses of owners started last Jan. 12. It was intended to ensure peaceful elections in May 2025.
Radio reports in Cotabato City on Wednesday morning stated that the Davao City Police Office shall prosecute Mr. Saluang and his escorts for illegal possession of firearms and violation of the gun ban being imposed by the Comelec. — John Felix M. Unson
