ICPO’s Project Blast nets 13 grenades

By Jennifer P. Rendon

Thirteen grenades were surrendered to police Friday, March 13, 2020, as part of Iloilo City Police Office (ICPO)’s effort to curb the illegal possession of explosives in the metropolis.

Police Lieutenant Colonel Efren Lozada, ICPO deputy chief for operations, said the explosives were turned over by the owners, whose identities were withheld for security reasons. They are all from La Paz district.

The explosives included nine rifle grenades, two fragmentation grenades, and two 40mm rifle cartridges.

The owners voluntarily surrendered the items to officials of Barangay Mansaya, relative to ICPO’s Project BLAST (Building a Link for Community to Achieve Safety and Trust).

Project BLAST, which used to be known as “May Kwarta sa Granada” program, is an initiative of the Iloilo City Advisory Council for police transformation and development. It is also part of the ICPO’s campaign against explosives.

ICPO offers P1,000 cash for every grenade a civilian will report or surrender to the police.

Police Captain Shella Mae Sangrines, ICPO spokesperson, said any person who could find or discover a grenade in their backyard, old houses, or and any other places in Iloilo City could report it to the PNP and receive the P1,000 reward.

The old Kwarta sa Granada program kicked off Dec. 27, 2017.

It was initially planned to run for 30 days but was extended after gaining positive feedback from the community.

A P50,000 seed money was contributed by stakeholders, the Iloilo City Advisory Council,  and other concerned citizens for the reward.

The project was seen as more of a pro-active measure on our part, together with the Iloilo City Liga ng mga Barangay, Sagrines said.

She cited previous incidents where construction workers or residents would accidentally stumble onto an “explosive find” while digging.

The program encourages people to report to police if ever they find a grenade so that trained personnel of the Explosives Ordnance Division (EOD) could properly dispose of the explosives.

Immediately after the surrender, EOD personnel tagged and marked the explosives and are now considered as safe for storage.

Sangrines said the ICPO has no facility for disposal of explosives.

ICPO’s latest disposal happened Sept. 1, 2018 after scores of grenades and several ammunition were detonated at the grounds of the 603rd Mobile Force Company in Barangay Guadalupe, Janiuay town.