EDITORIAL - More time for the top cop

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. recently approved amendments for the law setting the term of office of key officers in the Armed Forces of the Philippines when he signed Republic Act 11939 that amends RA 11709.

RA 11709 fixed the term of office for the head and other senior officers of AFP, but under RA 11939, only the AFP chief of staff will have a maximum tour of duty of three years unless sooner terminated by the president himself.

According to the same amendments the chiefs of the Philippine Army, Air Force, Navy, and the superintendent of the Philippine Military Academy, will now only have a maximum tour of duty of two years unless also sooner terminated.

Perhaps something along the likes of this --determining how long a uniformed official can stay in a position-- can also be done for the Philippine National Police. It should set a definite and fixed term of how long one should stay as PNP chief.

As it stands right now, the top PNP post is usually only offered to someone who has mere months or barely a year left in the police service. That means he barely has time to formulate changes or see them carried out to produce measurable effect.

Of course, there were others who got more than a “whiff” of the position. These include now Senator Ronald de la Rosa who served as top cop from July 1, 2016 to April 19, 2018. There was also Alan Purisima who served from December 17, 2012 to February 5, 2015, and Jesus Verzosa who served from September 27, 2008 to September 14, 2010, but they were more of exceptions than the rule.

Most of those who served as PNP chief sat in the post merely months or under a year.

Of course, we also don’t want them to “overstay” but they should stay long enough to make sure they contribute to the betterment of the organization, and most important of all, to be accountable for the actions of their men.

We understand this institution has its traditions and rules regarding seniority and we should respect that. The issue of who will head the organization or at least whose names should be given to the president for his choosing will always be in the hands of a few. But they should consider installing a PNP chief who can sit long enough to make a difference or impact on the organization.