Interior Secretary Jonvic Remulla has attributed the recent escalation in gun violence across the Philippines to a controversial firearms statute commonly associated with its reported sponsor.
During a news conference at Camp Crame in Quezon City, Remulla argued that Republic Act No. 11766—frequently referred to as the “Robin Padilla Law”—has fostered a climate of impunity by lowering penalties for unlawful firearm possession.
”The Robin Padilla Law, which extinguished culpability and made it a bailable offense, has led to a surge in crimes precisely because loose firearms is a bailable offense,” Remulla said.
Remulla highlighted that illegal firearm possession previously carried non-bailable terms, but key amendments eased penalties when unlicensed guns are not tied to an additional crime.
He cited past law enforcement warnings, noting that former Philippine National Police chief Nicanor Bartolome advocated as far back as 2011 to keep gun violations non-bailable to deter violence.
The Interior chief’s comments come after a deadly shooting at Ateneo de Zamboanga University on Tuesday, August 18, where a Grade 9 student fatally shot a Grade 10 classmate and injured two others before taking his own life.
Remulla pointed out that the firearm used in Zamboanga—which belonged to the suspect’s Bureau of Customs employee father—mirrors a recent incident in Tacloban City where a 14-year-old accessed a police officer’s service weapon, leaving three dead and over 20 wounded.
Calling for strict adult accountability when minors obtain service or personal weapons, Remulla questioned the current legal framework that often charges registered owners with light offenses while treating youth perpetrators solely under juvenile laws.
”Isn’t the owner of the gun equally responsible?” Remulla asked.
With PNP figures indicating that 98 percent of firearm-related offenses involve unregistered weapons, Remulla called on legislators to immediately overhaul the current statutory penalties.
”I call upon Congress to make laws that make it once again non-bailable, that make it once again preventable.”