Manila, April 1 -- The Police Regional Office in Western Visayas (PRO6) is calling on owners to surrender their unlicensed firearms to authorities or face cases amid the ongoing intensified implementation of search warrants.

"There is no reason for you to keep firearms for protection. We have not seen any threat for you to keep them. Better yet, surrender them now rather than we seize them through search warrants and face cases," PRO6 Regional Director Brig. Gen. Jack Wanky urged residents during an interview on Tuesday.

He noted that some people kept firearms for protection due to the "imminent presence and atrocities by the New People's Army," especially in far-flung areas.

"For now, even our counterparts from the AFP (Armed Forces o...