DUMANJUG town in Cebu has eased its total cellphone ban in schools after two fatal school shootings in less than two months, allowing students to bring devices for emergency use.
The shootings in Zamboanga and Tacloban were among 50 violent incidents and threats involving minors in schools nationwide between June 16 and mid-August 2026, according to the Philippine National Police (PNP).
The incidents have prompted responses from local governments, national agencies and religious leaders, including tighter firearm controls, stronger school security and calls for greater parental guidance.
Policy shift
Dumanjug Mayor Efren Guntrano “Gungun” Gica lifted the total cellphone ban after the Aug. 18 shooting at the Ateneo de Zamboanga University high school campus, where a Grade 9 student killed a Grade 10 student and wounded two others before taking his own life.
“Mas importante jud ang kinabuhi. Mao na nga akong gisugtan ang mga bata karon nga magdala og cellphone sa eskwelahan (Life is really more important. That is why I am allowing students to bring cellphones to school),” Gica said Wednesday, Aug. 19.
Dumanjug began restricting cellphones on June 24, two days after the shooting at San Jose National High School in Tacloban City that left three students dead and 20 injured. Police arrested two students, ages 14 and 15.
A total ban took effect June 29 to improve students’ focus, reading habits and face-to-face interaction.
Students may now bring cellphones to school but may use them only during emergencies. Teachers were instructed to provide containers where students can keep their phones during class and retrieve them upon dismissal.
Review on school security
The incidents prompted President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. to order a nationwide review of school security protocols. The Department of Education and the Department of Social Welfare and Development are also expanding psychosocial and mental health support for students and school personnel affected by violence.
For his part, Interior and Local Government Secretary Jonvic Remulla has asked Congress to penalize gun owners who fail to properly secure firearms later used in crimes.
He also proposed restoring the nonbailable status for illegal firearm possession and examining possible limits on minors’ access to violent online games and social media.
The PNP is drafting rules requiring firearm owners to undergo firearm storage seminars, while cybercrime units were directed to remove copies of the Zamboanga attack footage posted online.
In Dumanjug, Gica and local police have called on residents with unregistered firearms or expired licenses or registrations to surrender them to the Dumanjug Municipal Police Station by Aug. 25.
Gica said authorities have a list of people with expired firearm records and those suspected of possessing loose or unregistered firearms. Police will begin serving search warrants and filing criminal charges on Aug. 26 against those who fail to comply.
Family and technology
The shootings have also renewed discussion about technology’s influence on children and the role of families in shaping their behavior.
Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle called on parents and grandparents to take greater responsibility for teaching children compassion.
“Games and AI have no heart; only humans do,” Tagle said during a mass at the Parish Church of the Holy Sacrifice at the University of the Philippines in Quezon City.
The school-safety debate now extends beyond campus security to emergency cellphone access, firearm storage, online content, mental health support and parental guidance. / CDF, TPM,