Graduates of Project Trident pose with Danao City officials and key stakeholders after completing their transition from gunsmiths to Forest Rangers—marking a new chapter of hope, purpose, and
sustainable livelihood.
DANAO CITY, CEBU — Sixty-eight (68) former Danao City gunsmiths officially complete their transition into lawful, sustainable work as ‘Forest Rangers’ under Project Trident, a groundbreaking livelihood transformation program led by the City Government under the Durano leadership.
Held on June 7, 2025, at the Danao City Training Center during the City’s Charter Anniversary celebration, the graduation ceremony—spearheaded by Vice Mayor Nito Durano and City Councilor Ivy Durano—gathers department heads, officials, and key stakeholders from the City Government, the barangays, and the PNP.
The program directly responds to Danao’s decades-long challenge of illegal arms production.
READ:
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Curbing the proliferation of illegal firearms
In partnership with the PNP, Project Trident converts technical gunsmithing skills into legal, meaningful, and government-supported jobs. It follows a three-phase framework: profiling and validation, skills transformation through training and counseling, and livelihood integration.
Graduates now serve as Job Order personnel under the LGU, tasked with forest protection, environmental preservation, and community-based tourism.
Beyond the forest ranger job, the city—through the City Agricultural Services Office (CAgSO)— also implements a Fresh Water Farm Livelihood Program for former paltik makers in Brgy. Dungga, promoting peaceful and sustainable fishing practices.
Vice Mayor-elect Hon. Ivy Durano, one of the program’s key proponents, shares the inspiration behind the initiative:
“Every city has its silent stories of pain, struggle, and redemption. In Danao, we know these stories too well. For decades, our city has carried the weight of a shadowed past, marked by illegal gun manufacturing. But we’ve also witnessed something far more powerful: the resilience and potential of our people. This became the very heart and soul behind Project Trident.”
Following the success of Batch 1, Batch 2—with 102 new beneficiaries from barangays Santican, Lawaan, Dungga, Mantija, Pili, Danasan, Cahumayan, and Masaba—is set to begin training and integration in the coming months.
PCOL Jovito M. Atanacio, Acting Provincial Director of the Cebu Police Provincial Office, lauds the program as a model for grassroots peacebuilding:
“Project Trident is a clear message that change is possible when people are given the opportunity, support, and hope. These former gunsmiths are no longer threats to society—they are now protectors of our forests, our communities, and our future. Danao City is leading the way toward peace, progress, and inclusive development.”
Through Project Trident, Danao City dismantles the cycle of underground gun manufacturing and opens doors to inclusive growth, peace and local economic development. More than a program, it stands as a turning point—a powerful symbol of community resilience, inter-agency cooperation and the unshakable belief that with the right support, second chances become sustainable futures, and peace is built not with force, but with purpose—HERE AND NOW.
