Nearly 4,000 slots still open for cops seeking promotion

MANILA, Philippines - Any police officer can work on getting promoted since almost 4,000 positions are vacant, the Philippine National Police (PNP) announced yesterday.

PNP chief Director General Nicanor Bartolome said only 20,917 policemen availed of and qualified for the promotion when there are 24,735 vacancies in the PNP organization – thus there are still 3,818 vacant positions. The promotion entails a higher paycheck and better positions in the PNP units.

Bartolome said the PNP has completed the latest regular promotion cycle for the officer corps and rank-and-file members for 2011.

Simultaneous oath-taking ceremonies were held recently at the national headquarters and in all 17 police regional offices to formalize the promotion of 1,690 commissioned officers and 19,227 non-commissioned officers assigned in different PNP units and offices.

Bartolome said several promotion boards were constituted to process all applications for next-grade promotion of qualified police commissioned officers and non-commissioned officers.

The mass oath-taking ceremonies were also part of the simple celebration of the 21st founding anniversary of the PNP last Jan. 29.

But unlike in the previous years when the PNP had prepared elaborate celebrations for the founding anniversary, under Bartolome’s term the celebration was simple.

Instead, the PNP is preparing a more elaborate celebration on Aug. 8, the 111th anniversary of the police service, lawmen performing police functions while under the military organization.