THE Negros Occidental Police Provincial Office (Nocppo) is not amenable to the proposal to disarm police officers during their off days.

Police Lieutenant Abegael Donasco, spokesperson for Nocppo, said disarming off-duty cops would be disadvantageous, pointing out they will not be able to respond immediately if a crime was committed within their area.

Donasco also said the lives of off-duty cops will also be put in danger, as some would also like to kill them, especially those who may have bumped into criminal gangs or individuals.

Donasco added ever since Police Colonel Romy Palgue came into office as director of Nocppo, there has been no case in the province wherein an off-duty cop had shot someone due to a feud or a misunderstanding.

The proposal came out amid the recent controversies involving the killing of an unarmed woman in Quezon City in May and the murder of two people in Paniqui, Tarlac in December 2020.

Both cases were believed to be due to long-standing feuds.

Earlier in May, a drunk Police Master Sargeant Hensie Zinampan shot and killed 52-year-old Lilybeth Valdez outside a sari-sari store in Fairview, Quezon City.

Police believed that the murder stemmed from an incident involving a fistfight between Zinampan and Valdez’s son on May 1.

In December 2020, Police Senior Master Sargeant Jonel Nuezca also shot and killed 52-year-old Sonya Gregorio and his 25-year-old son Frank Gregorio in Paniqui, Tarlac, which stemmed from a long-standing feud between Nuezca and the Gregorio family.

Both incidents have triggered calls from various groups and politicians to disarm police officers whenever they are off-duty.