Solon bats for Phl version of ATF

MANILA, Philippines - Davao City Rep. Karlo Nograles urged Congress to create the Philippine version of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).

He said an inter-agency ATF could be “more effective in enforcing not only the newly signed Republic Act 10591, otherwise known as the Comprehensive Firearms and Ammunition Regulation Act, but also Republic Act No. 10351, otherwise known as the sin tax reform law.”

 â€œThese two historic laws might need a specially focused team of law enforcers just like the ATF in the US. The organization and set-up can be made similar with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Authority (PDEA) but the focus would be to run after cigarette and alcohol smugglers, and conduct operations against loose firearms and gun runners,” he said.

He said one of the issues raised by anti-sin tax law advocates is the proliferation of smuggled cigarettes and alcoholic beverages.

While the Bureau of Customs (BoC) is doing exceptionally well in the campaign against smuggling, the proposed law enforcement body can provide operational support outside of the bureau’s jurisdiction to stop the sale of smuggled goods that are subject to sin tax, he added.

Nograles stressed that there is also a need to create a special group whose sole focus is to go after gunrunning syndicates and launch a crackdown against loose firearms and private armed groups (PAGs).

He pointed out that while the Philippine National Police (PNP) has its Firearms and Explosives Division (FED) which has the task of regulating the sale of firearms and in issuing gun permits, the unit has very limited law enforcement capabilities and its function is largely administrative in nature.

 â€œFED lacks the manpower and there is a potential conflict of interest because of their frequent dealings with gun shops and other groups that are in the firearms business,” he said.

He said while the PNP has achieved a good degree of success in its campaign against gun ban violators during the election period, there is no sign that it is making any progress in the fight against loose firearms and motorcycle-riding criminals.

“This trend only shows that with or without a gun ban, armed criminals will not be deterred by any law or by any checkpoint to commit crime. What we need is a law enforcement agency that would put an end to the continuing proliferation of unlicensed firearms which lawless elements use to carry out criminal activities,” he said.

“For example, did the police know that guns including unlicensed ones are being sold like laptops and cellphones over the Internet? There is also no control on the proliferation of ammunition and gun parts, which can actually be used to tamper with the gun’s ballistics record,” he added.