Proliferation of firearms

We have become a nation where criminals are on a rampage. Murder stalks the streets, with civilians becoming both victims and perpetrators of a never-ending violence.

Not a day passes without news of men, women, old people and children being killed, not by accident but by criminal intent and through the use of handguns.

The proliferation of guns has caused an increase in the murder rate. Despite a government campaign, unlicensed firearms have become more common, being hoarded by criminal syndicates, politicians with private armies and bodyguards.

The common strategy known as “riding tandem” has already contributed to deaths that continue to embarrass authorities because of their inability to curtail or solve these.

That’s why even if it may be futile for the media to report more on the matter, we will not stop in calling the attention of authorities and make them realize that the campaign against loose firearms has not dented the existence of illegal ones.

Although we feel the despair of our appeal, we have to continue appealing to authorities to do their job seriously. Even if we often read that police and soldiers are also allegedly involved in arms trafficking, our sense of duty urges us to keep making the call for an earnest crusade against loose firearms, especially now that we are confronted with crimes committed through their use.

Authorities must realize that it is a dereliction of their duty to let the present situation remain as it is.

MARK E. PARAS JR. and RAMON DIÑO, [email protected]