PAGADIAN CITY (Mindanao Examiner / July 24, 2013) – Pagadian City Mayor has ordered an inventory of all firearms issued by the local government to the police force are properly accounted for, state media said on Wednesday.
Mayor Romeo Pulmones said he instructed the City Legal Department to conduct the inventory. “These firearms should be used to protect the people of Pagadian,” he said.
The order came following reports that some of the weapons had not been returned by policemen assigned here during the administration of Mayor Samuel Co, who is now in hiding after being implicated in the multimillion investment scam by the Aman Futures.
Pulmones said the legal department is conducting a thorough study on the situation wherein legal actions may be filed against policemen who failed to return the firearms, especially those who are no longer assigned at the city police office.
“These are owned by the city government. If these are owned by the Philippine National Police then they could bring them anywhere they are assigned. But, since these are owned by the City Government, then they should return the firearms to the Pagadian City Police Station,” Pulmones said in a report by the Philippine Information Agency.
Pulmones said there were also reports that some of the guns are in the hands of civilians and have not returned them to the police. (Mindanao Examiner)
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