PNP needs 10,000 new officers

Interior Secretary Eduardo Año (File photo by NOY MORCOSO / INQUIRER.net)

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine National Police needs 10,000 new officers and Interior Secretary Eduardo Año, the police overseer, wants only the best and straightest to fill the vacancies.

The recruitment comes amid the identification of rogue cops who sell seized drugs and suspicions, raised during a Senate hearing last week, that the PNP is throwing a so-called drug queen under the bus to protect higher-ups.

To clean up the ranks, Año has directed the PNP and the National Police Commission (Napolcom) to be strict and uphold the highest standards in recruiting new officers.

Morally upright

“The best time to weed out undesirables is during the recruitment process,” Año said in a statement on Sunday. “[T]herefore the Napolcom and the PNP must only hire those with the necessary skills, are morally upright, and will enforce the law without fear or favor.”

He added, “Let’s raise the bar and be stringent as we are potentially taking in individuals who are either going to be heroes or bad eggs.”

Choosing the best now would do away with internal cleansing later, Año said.

He advised the PNP to pick only “decent, excellent and reliable” applicants.

“The salary and compensation that would be given to new policemen is no joke so we really need to hire only the rightful and true public servants,” Año said.

The Napolcom has approved the hiring of 10,000 patrol officers, most of whom will be assigned to the PNP’s mobile forces in the regions.

Some 2,100 will be assigned to the PNP’s support units.

Requirements

To be eligible, applicants must be Filipino citizens; at least 21 years old but not older than 30; 1.6 meters tall if male, 1.5 m if female; not weigh more or less 5 kilograms from the standard weight corresponding to their weight, age and gender; must be college graduates.

Año said background checks would be conducted to ensure that applicants met all requirements, including not having been dishonorably discharged from military employment or dismissed for cause from any civilian office in the government, and not having been convicted by final judgment of an offense or crime involving moral turpitude.

Those interested may apply online through the Napolcom Directorate for Personnel and Records Management website.