New law to benefit firemen, jail guards

MANILA, Philippines - This is a piece of good news for firemen and jail guards.

Firemen and jail guards who have rendered more than 15 years of service shall no longer be required to comply with the educational and eligibility requirements under a new law signed by President Arroyo recently.

Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno said Republic Act 9592 signed by Mrs. Arroyo last May 8 benefits more than 6,000 firemen and 1,675 jail guards who nearly lost their jobs last month because of a provision in an existing law.

“In behalf of the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) and Bureau of Jail Management and Penology (BJMP) leadership, I would like to thank President Arroyo and the members of Congress for taking into consideration the plight of our personnel who, through the years, have remained committed to the service,” Puno said.

DILG Undersecretary Marius Corpus said RA 9592 amended certain provisions of RA 9263 or the BFP and BJMP Professionalization Act of 2004.

The act extends for another five years the period for complying with the minimum educational qualification and appropriate civil service eligibility in the appointment of the BFP and BJMP personnel with less than 15 years of service.

Under RA 9263, personnel of the BFP and the BJMP who failed to satisfy the educational and eligibility requirements last month faced separation from the service if they were below 50 years old and had served the government for less than 20 years.

“Usually, new firemen and jail guards have to undergo six months of training and orientation before they are deployed to the field. Hence, it would be very costly for the government to separate from the service those who have already been trained and have gained the much needed experience, pay their separation benefits and spend for the training of their replacement,” Corpus said.

Similarly, BFP and BJMP personnel who have acquired National Police Commission (Napolcom) eligibility prior to the effectivity of RA 9263 shall no longer be required to obtain the appropriate civil service eligibility.

RA 9592 also states that within the five-year extension period, the issue of whether the BFP shall devolve to local government units should be discussed by Congress.