ANTIGUN ADVOCATES HAVE ASSAILED the unusually high number of gun licenses issued to businessmen who, according to records of the Philippine National Police, hold a quarter of the over one million licensed firearms.

Antigun advocate Nandy Pacheco and anticrime crusader Teresita Ang See of the Movement for the Restoration of Peace and Order said they did not see any justification for businessmen arming themselves.

Records of the PNP’s Firearms and Explosives Division (FED) showed 283,522 firearm licenses had been issued to businessmen, the most held by any sector (26 percent), of the 1,081,074 gun licenses issued.

Security agencies were issued 217,124 licenses and private employees, 172,414. Members of the military, police, Bureau of Jail and Management and Penology and Bureau of Fire Protection were granted 134,000 firearm licenses.

Pacheco said it was not justifiable for businessmen to carry guns even if they claimed threats by business rivals.

“It’s a kind of machismo prevalent in our society. Most attacks come from behind or at the side of the victim,” he said.

Ang See said she did not favor the carrying of guns. “It doesn’t bode well for the peace and order situation if civilians carry firearms. There is no justification to bring a firearm. It will just cause a lot of problems like during traffic altercations.”
But she said kidnap victims had been known to carry guns after going through the ordeal of abduction. “It’s for security reasons and it’s understandable. They want some sort of security blanket.”

Pacheco challenged the government to suspend the issuance of Permits to Carry Firearms Outside of Residence (PTCFOR). He also said penalties for illegal possession of firearms should be raised to a maximum of 20 years imprisonment from the current 12 years. “This will definitely be a deterrent to carriers of unlicensed firearms.”

According to FED statistics, of the total number of licensed firearms, 209,901 were for .45-cal. pistols, 205,019 were for .38-cal. handguns, 188,413 were for 9mm pistols and 152,290 for 12-gauge shotguns.

The FED also said 482,162 firearm licenses had expired, 44 percent of them in the National Capital Region.

The FED also approved 10,115 applications for airsoft rifles. The rifles, replicas of the real thing, are used by hobbyists in “war games.” Owners are charged a P200 one-time fee.