By Billy Begas
The House of Representatives has approved on third and final reading the measure restructuring the Philippine National Police (PNP) to make it more responsive in dealing with its present-day challenges.
No member of the House opposed the passage of House Bill 8327, which will amend the Department of Interior and Local Government Act and the Philippine National Police Reform and Reorganization Act. It garnered 187 votes.
“Through these various changes, we aspire to make the PNP more responsive in dealing with its present-day challenges, including internal issues. This will ultimately redound to the benefit of Filipinos, whom the PNP seeks to protect,” said Speaker Ferdinand Martin Romualdez, a principal author of the bill.
According to the bill, the PNP Chief shall have a command group composed of the offices of the deputy chief for administration, the deputy chief for operations, and the chief of the directorial staff.
The measure creates the position of the directorate for personnel and records management, for intelligence, for operations, for logistics, for plans, comptrollership, for police-community relations, for investigation, for training, education and doctrine development, for research and development, and for information and communications technology management.
“The Chief of the PNP shall serve a term of office not to exceed four years, and shall be compulsory retired at the maximum tenure in position herein prescribed, or at age 56, whichever is earlier,” the bill said.
The measure will also establish Area Police Commands (APC) in clustered police regional offices, district offices, and city police offices “in order to enhance the control of the Chief of the PNP.”
“The APC shall orchestrate, supervise, and control the conduct of inter-regional operations against insurgency, terrorism, and other internal security threats. Further, the APC shall likewise conduct search, rescue, and relief operations in times of calamities and other emergency situations within their respective areas of jurisdiction,” the bill read.
