MANILA, Philippines—With the upcoming 2010 national elections, the Philippine National Police is set to limit the number of police escorts assigned to government and private individuals to only two policemen each, Interior Secretary Ronaldo Puno said on Wednesday.

At the same time, any government or private individual who would like to exceed this two-escort rule must first show ample proof that his life was “under serious threat,” Puno said.

PNP Director General Jesus Verzosa is set to issue the new directive, as requests for armed escorts are expected to spike with the upcoming elections and the campaign period.

Puno has also banned members of the elite Special Action Force to act as security escorts to both government and private individuals. He said that only those under the Police Security and Protection Office will be assigned as private securities.

“We are going to tighten this procedure a little bit by requiring that only two security escorts be provided for each individual,” Puno said.

The new directive is also set to cover all local chief executives, who usually have more than two police officers assigned to them.

The PNP has also applied this two-escort rule in the 2007 elections.