Following the recent implementation of the pay hike for the uniformed personnel, Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) Chief Eduardo N. Año directed all police, fire, and jail officers to double their efforts since “double pay comes double service to the public”.
Año urged all DILG uniformed personnel to instill in themselves the DILG’s brand of “matino, mahusay, at maaasahan” in serving and protecting the people.
“My goal as head of DILG is to cleanse the police, fire and jail ranks of bad eggs and make the DILG the best department in government. As part of the DILG, you must also conform to our brand which all DILG personnel know by heart,” Año said.
“I would like to emphasize that under my watch, we will put the Philippine National Police (PNP), Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) under a higher standard. Shape up or ship out!,” he added..
Pres. Rodrigo R. Duterte authorized the increase of base pay of military and uniformed personnel in the government and for other purposes with the signing of Congress Joint Resolution No. 1 this month .
Based on the joint resolution, a Police Officer I which is the lowest position in the PNP hierarchy now receives ₱29,668, a 100% increase from the previous base pay of ₱14,800.
The same amount of remuneration is also received on the first pay day of January 2018 for a Fire Officer I and Jail Officer I, the lowest positions in the BFP and BJMP ranks.
Along with the substantially bigger take home pay, Año urges the PNP, BJMP, BFP, and Philippine Public Safety College (PPSC) to step up their game really big time and be more committed in carrying out their respective roles in maintaining peace and order and ensuring public safety.
Double time for anti-illegal drugs campaign
Año urges the PNP to ensure that the third round of implementation for Oplan Tokhang will no longer include rogue police officers in the illegal drugs operations to be conducted in close coordination with the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency (PDEA).
He said that double pay means that that the PNP should also double its efforts to cleanse the ranks of police scalawags that tarnish the image of the entire police organization.
“I have directed PNP Chief Dela Rosa to ensure that police scalawags are not allowed to join and conduct house-to-house visitations and in any other Oplan Tokhang related operations,” Año said.
He urged the public to immediately report to the DILG and National Police Commission (Napolcom) all illegal activities in order to help his office in the internal cleansing campaign.
Año also advised the BJMP to enforce more stringent and sustained measures in the Oplan Linis Piitan and other drives against illegal drugs and contrabands in jails.
Stricter measures for fire safety
Año also ordered the BFP to enforce stricter measures to ensure fire safety at the business establishments like malls and other places of convergence for the general public.
“Apart from the salary increase, the BFP now has additional fire stations, more fire trucks, and more modern firefighting equipment. It is now high time for us to give better services to our people,” Año added.
