MANILA, Philippines - The Commission on Elections (Comelec) said yesterday that gun replicas, although they may be used to scare people, are exempted from the existing gun ban.
“A gun replica, no matter how scary it is, will not kill people, thus even if it looks like a real gun it is not covered by the gun ban,” Comelec spokesman James Jimenez explained.
While a gun replica is a facsimile of a real firearm, Jimenez pointed out that it lacks the element of a dangerous weapon – it doesn’t fire bullets.
According to Jimenez, the Comelec has opted to imposed a gun ban purposely to prevent people from killing one another, particularly candidates and voters, during the election period.
“The purpose of the gun ban is to prevent violence during the elections and unless you hit a person with a gun replica on the head, it cannot cause any harm to people,” he stressed.
However, Jimenez said air guns and airsoft rifles, which expel bullets or slugs, are covered by the existing ban.
Meanwhile, Jimenez warned the public of false checkpoints that could be used by robbers to victimize people.
“We would like to remind the public that Comelec checkpoints are located in well-lit areas and they are manned by uniformed policemen who are also required to wear nameplates,” he said.