Military, police ink agreement to fight insurgency

MANILA, Philippines - The military will be active in conflict-manageable areas and the police will be at the helm after they have been declared stable.

This coordination between the two forces in handling the insurgency problem is contained in an agreement signed yesterday between the Department of National Defense (DND) and the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG).

Under the newly signed Revised Joint Implementing Rules and Regulations (RJIRR), the Armed Forces and the Philippine National Police (PNP) will play prescribed roles and in varying stages. 

In insurgency-suppressed areas, the military and the police will jointly take an active role in dealing with internal security threats.

Defense Secretary Voltaire Gazmin and Interior Undersecretary Edwin Enrile signed the RJIRR at the Commissioned Officers’ Club in Camp Aguinaldo with Armed Forces chief Gen. Hernando Iriberri and PNP chief Director General Ricardo Marquez standing as witnesses.

The RJIRR is a mandate to enhance cooperation and coordination between the Armed Forces and the PNP, according to Armed Forces public affairs  chief  Col. Noel Detoyato.

“It is also expected to clarify operational procedures and roles of the AFP and the PNP against insurgency in connection with the implementation of the Executive Order 546,” he said.

EO 546 directs the PNP to undertake active support to the Armed Forces in internal security operations   to suppress insurgency and other serious threats to national security.

The RJIRR also set into motion all  actions and roles not only of the military, the police, the defense department and the DILG but also local government units in dealing with the insurgency problem, Detoyato said.

“The DILG is hereby tasked to ensure that the LGUs act within their prescribed duties and functions in supporting the implementation of the RJIRR at the different stages or phase of internal security in accordance with the Local Government Code of 1991 and other applicable laws,” he said.

The RJIRR is needed to ensure effective implementation of the Armed Forces-PNP partnership in the conduct of internal security with the help of a Joint Peace and Security Coordinating Center that will also act as an authority in assessing the implementation of the agreement, Detoyato  said.