President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has vetoed the proposed Philippine National Police (PNP) Organizational Reforms Act, citing issues with administrative efficiency and policy alignment.
He emphasized the need to align the bill with the present and future administrations’ policies and programs, while also supporting upcoming government initiatives such as the National Government Rightsizing Program.
“While this administration recognizes the laudable objectives of the bill, I cannot approve it because the provisions run counter to administrative policy and efficiency,” Mr. Marcos said in his veto message.
The vetoed measure is a consolidated version of Senate Bill 2449 and House Bill 8327, principally authored by Sen. Ramon Revilla and House Speaker Martin Romualdez.
“With all due respect to Congress, this bill should not be a missed opportunity to implement genuine transformative reforms that will allow the PNP to be more effective and efficient in the performance of its mandate to maintain peace and order, protect lives, and ensure public safety,” Marcos said.
The President acknowledged the proposed reforms aim to improve the PNP by upgrading Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA) Cadets to the level of Police Cadets, granting them entry-level pay at Salary Grade 21. This upgrade would recognize them as government employees with associated benefits.
However, he cautioned this remuneration adjustment should not create pay disparities or distortions when compared to other equivalent government positions.
“The grant of Salary Grade 21 to PNPA Cadets will distort the pay schedule of Military and Uniformed Personnel (MUP) and is higher than what cadets would receive after becoming Police Lieutenants,” Marcos said.
He also criticized the bill for creating redundant and overlapping offices.
“The reorganization established under the bill does not consider the functional relationships of the different offices and fails to clarify reporting lines,” Marcos said.
“Different offices performing the same or related functions, all headed by high ranking officials, will definitely be counterproductive and will defeat the purpose of enhancing the span of supervision and administrative control of the PNP Chief,” he added.
Marcos objected to the establishment of two separate liaison offices, each headed by a Police Brigadier General, calling them “unwarranted.”
He also questioned the placement of the Integrity Monitoring and Enforcement Group under the National Operational Support Units: “This may lead to questions about its independence.”
The President flagged potential overreach by the National Police Commission (NAPOLCOM) into Civil Service Commission (CSC) functions and unclear administrative relationships among the CSC, the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the PNP.
He also criticized the bill’s retroactive application provision for being vague and ambiguous.
“It needs clarifications and omits comprehensible standards. For instance, what are the rights and benefits contemplated and how can the rights and benefits be retroactively applied to individuals who have already been separated from service? The provision may breed confusion,” Marcos said.
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