A TEMPORARY suspension of all Permits-to-Carry-Firearms-Outside-of-Residence issued to licensed gunholders is in the offing before and during the June 30 inauguration of President-elect Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ Marcos Jr. as part of the heightened security measures set to be implemented by the Philippine National Police during the event.

This after PNP Director for Operations, Major General Val T. de Leon said he has asked PNP Officer-in-Charge, Lieutenant Gen. Vicente D. Danao Jr. to implement such a measure as part of their effort to control the presence of guns in the streets during the event.

“Ngayon pa lang aking ipapaalam na sa publiko na nag-request na po kay ating Lt. Gen. Vicente Danao, ang officer-in-charge, to suspend ‘yong ating permit to carry firearms outside of residence in the inclusive period,” the official told a radio interview.

“And we will keep you posted on that, so that everybody in the public community ay hindi po sila magdala ng kanilang baril. Gano’n din sa paghahanda natin dito kay President-elect Bongbong Marcos dito sa National Museum, I myself conducted the inspection in the area, nagkaroon na rin kami ng panayam doon sa operations group ni President-elect Marcos,” he said.

Danao said they are fully preparing for the PBBM’s inaugural and are set to deploy over 6,000 policemen to secure the event. The PNP will be providing outside security during the inauguration of PBBM while the Presidential Security Group will be the ones to provide close-in security to the First Family.

At least 3,500 policemen will also secure the inauguration in Davao City of Vice President-elect Sara Duterte-Carpio on June 19.

Members of the Armed Forces and the Philippine Coast Guard will also help beef-up the security during the two national events.

The top cop maintained that they will strictly enforce the ‘no permit, no rally’ rule during the two major events and that protesters would only be allowed to express their sentiments in so-called ‘freedom parks’ provided they won’t break the law.

“Remember that the world is watching us, and we do not allow unruly and unauthorized rally, meron tayong tinatawag na freedom parks dito, meron tayong Liwasang Bonifacio and all the rest where they could air their grievances and issues, not in areas where it is not authorized especially by local government,” de Leon for his part said.

Danao said they are fully mobilizing all their resources and manpower to ensure a peaceful and orderly inauguration of PBBM.

“We are counting down to the historic inaugural ceremonies for the 17th President and 15th Vice President, respectively, of the Republic of the Philippines, which will happen in the coming days.

This is one important event that the entire nation looks forward to and the Philippine National Police is mobilizing its resources and manpower to ensure the success of these state activities,” he said.

The top cop said they will also continue to enforce the ‘no permit, no rally’ rule while maintaining a maximum tolerance policy in dealing with would-be protesters.

He said that the PNP will always ensure that the people will be afforded their right to freedom of expression and assembly provided they won’t be abusing the law.

At present, he said that the Manila Police District headed by Brigadier Gen. Leo M. Francisco is busy plotting out all security measures at the vicinity of the National Museum in coordination with the PSG.

Danao said that the museum has also been temporarily closed to visitors as part of the security preparations for PBBM’s inaugural address.

When asked if they would allow protesters to converge at nearby Liwasang Bonifacio and Chino Roces (formerly Mendiola) Bridge in Manila, the PNP-OIC said they welcome people who will be fully observing the law.

“Pag isisigaw nila eh mabuhay si Presidente Bongbong, ok yan at baka mas palapitin pa sila pero pag nag-violate sila ng ating mga patakaran, ibang usapan na yun,” he said.

The top cop again underscored their readiness to ensure the smooth transition of power to President-elect Bongbong Marcos Jr. from President Duterte as the PNP remain ever faithful and loyal to the Constitution, the Flag, and the duly constituted authorities in dispensing its law w enforcement and public safety duty.

He also emphasized anew that police are under order to always observe maximum tolerance in dealing with protesters and assure everybody that their right to air their grievance in public will be protected at all times.

“However, when people who have no other intention but to undermine the government start to break the rules, start to violate the agreements we made, start to transgress the law in front of our faces, we have to act, and act with dispatch and resolve,” he said.

Danao has called on the entire police force to remain united and act with professionalism in dealing with incidents similar to what happened during the proclamation of President-elect Marcos Jr. at the Batasan Pambansa last month.

“Maximum tolerance is our policy but we will see to it that the rule of law will always be followed in the event protesters would start creating trouble.

“We will always allow them to have their peaceful assembly in so-called Freedom Parks and with permits from local government units. However, we have to prevent them from even moving an inch outside of these authorized rally zones,” he said.

“Those who will go overboard in their actions and march outside our freedom parks have to face the rule of law as we try to keep peace and order always. We must always stand our ground to accomplish our mission and nobody can dispute that,” the PNP-OIC added.