TITLE VI

DISCIPLINARY MECHANISMS

Sec. 52. Sec. 41 of Republic Act No. 6975 is hereby amended to read
as follows:cralaw

"SEC. 41(a). Citizen's complaints. — Any complaint by a natural or

juridical person against any member of the PNP shall be brought
before the following:

"(1) Chiefs of Police, where the offense is punishable by withholding

of privileges, restriction to specified limits, suspension or forfeiture
of salary, or any combination thereof, for a period not exceeding
fifteen (15) days;

"(2) Mayors of cities and municipalities, where the offense is

punishable by withholding of privileges, restriction to specified
limits, suspension or forfeiture of salary, or any combination
thereof, for a period of not less than sixteen (16) days but not
exceeding thirty (30) days;

"(3) People's Law Enforcement Board, as created under Sec. 43

hereof, where the offense is punishable by withholding of privileges,
restriction to specified limits, suspension or forfeiture of salary, or
any combination thereof, for a period exceeding thirty (30) days; or
by dismissal.

"The Commission shall provide in its implementing rules and

regulations a scale of penalties to be imposed upon any member of
the PNP under this Sec..

"(b) Internal discipline. — On dealing with minor offenses involving

internal discipline found to have been committed by any regular
member of their respective commands, the duly designated
supervisors and equivalent officers of the PNP shall, after due notice
and summary hearing, exercise disciplinary powers as follows:

"(1) Chiefs of police or equivalent supervisors may summarily

impose the administrative punishment of admonition or reprimand;
restriction to specified limits; withholding of privileges; forfeiture of
salary or suspension; or any of the combination of the foregoing:
Provided, That, in all cases, the total period shall not exceed fifteen
(15) days;

"(2) Provincial directors or equivalent supervisors may summarily

impose administrative punishment of admonition or reprimand;
restrictive custody; withholding of privileges; forfeiture of salary or
suspension, or any combination of the foregoing: Provided, That, in
all cases, the total period shall not exceed thirty (30) days;

"(3) Police regional directors or equivalent supervisors shall have

the power to impose upon any member the disciplinary punishment
of dismissal from the service. He may also impose the
administrative punishment of admonition or reprimand; restrictive
custody; withholding of privileges; suspension or forfeiture of
salary; demotion; or any combination of the foregoing: Provided,
That, in all cases, the total period shall not exceed sixty (60) days;
"(4) The Chief of the PNP shall have the power to impose the
disciplinary punishment of dismissal from the service; suspension or
forfeiture of salary; or any combination thereof for a period not
exceeding one hundred eighty (180) days: Provided, further, That
the chief of the PNP shall have the authority to place police
personnel under restrictive custody during the pendency of a grave
administrative case filed against him or even after the filing of a
criminal complaint, grave in nature, against such police personnel.

"(c) Exclusive jurisdiction. — A complaint or a charge filed against a

PNP member shall be heard and decided exclusively by the
disciplining authority who has acquired original jurisdiction over the
case and notwithstanding the existence of concurrent jurisdiction as
regards the offense: Provided, That offenses which carry higher
penalties referred to a disciplining authority shall be referred to the
appropriate authority which has jurisdiction over the offense.

"For purposes of this Act, a 'minor offense' shall refer to any act or
omission not involving moral turpitude, but affecting the internal
discipline of the PNP, and shall include, but not limited to:

"(1) Simple misconduct or negligence;

"(2) Insubordination;

"(3) Frequent absences and tardiness;

"(4) Habitual drunkenness; and

"(5) Gambling prohibited by law.

"(d) Forum shopping of multiple filing of complaints. — When an

administrative complaint is filed with a police disciplinary authority,
such as the People's Law Enforcement Board (PLEB), no other case
involving the same cause of action shall be filed with any other
disciplinary authority.

"In order to prevent forum-shopping or multiple filing of complaints,

the complainant or party seeking relief in the complaint shall certify
under oath in such pleading, or in a sworn certification annexed
thereto and simultaneously filed therewith, to the truth of the
following facts and undertaking:

"(a) that he has not heretofore commenced any other action or

proceeding involving the same issues in other disciplinary forum;

"(b) that to the best of his knowledge, no such action or proceeding

is pending in other police administrative disciplinary machinery or
authority;

"(c) that if there is any such action or proceeding which is either

pending or may have been terminated, he must state the status
thereof; and

"(d) that if he should thereafter learn that a similar action or

proceeding has been filed or is pending before any other police
disciplinary authority, he must undertake to report that fact within
five (5) days therefrom to the disciplinary authority where the
original complaint or pleading has been filed."
Sec. 53. Sec. 42 of Republic Act No. 6975 is hereby amended to read
as follows:
cralaw

"SEC. 42. Summary dismissal powers of the National Police

Commission, PNP Chief and PNP Regional Directors. — The National
Police Commission, the chief of the PNP and PNP regional directors,
after due notice and summary hearings, may immediately remove or
dismiss any respondent PNP member in any of the following cases:

"(a) When the charge is serious and the evidence of guilt is strong;

"(b) When the respondent is a recidivist or has been repeatedly

charged and there are reasonable grounds to believe that he is
guilty of the charges; and

"(c) When the respondent is guilty of a serious offense involving

conduct unbecoming of a police officer.

"Any member or officer of the PNP who shall go on absence without

official leave (AWOL) for a continuous period of thirty (30) days or
more shall be dismissed immediately from the service. His activities
and whereabouts during the period shall be investigated and if
found to have committed a crime, he shall be prosecuted
accordingly."
Sec. 54. Sec. 44 of Republic Act No. 6975 is hereby amended to read
as follows:
cralaw

"SEC. 44. Disciplinary Appellate Boards. — The formal administrative

disciplinary machinery of the PNP shall be the National Appellate
Board and the regional appellate boards.

"The National Appellate Board shall be composed of the four (4)

regular commissioners and shall be chaired by the executive officer.
The Board shall consider appeals from decisions of the Chief of the
PNP.

"The National Appellate Board may conduct its hearings or sessions

in Metropolitan Manila or any part of the country as it may deem
necessary.

"There shall be at least one (1) regional appellate board per

administrative region in the country to be composed of a senior
officer of the regional Commission as Chairman and one (1)
representative each from the PNP, and the regional peace and order
council as members. It shall consider appeals from decisions of the
regional directors, other officials, mayors, and the PLEBs: Provided,
That the Commission may create additional regional appellate
boards as the need arises."
Sec. 55. Sec. 47 of Republic Act No. 6975 is hereby amended to read
as follows:
cralaw

"Sec. 47. Preventive suspension pending criminal case. — Upon the

filing of a complaint or information sufficient in form and substance
against a member of the PNP for grave felonies where the penalty
imposed by law is six (6) years and one (1) day or more, the court
shall immediately suspend the accused from office for a period not
exceeding ninety (90) days from arraignment: Provided, however,
That if it can be shown by evidence that the accused is harassing
the complainant and/or witnesses, the court may order the
preventive suspension of the accused PNP member even if the
charge is punishable by a penalty lower than six (6) years and one
(1) day: Provided, further, That the preventive suspension shall not
be more than ninety (90) days except if the delay in the disposition
of the case is due to the fault, negligence or petitions of the
respondent: Provided, finally, That such preventive suspension may
be sooner lifted by the court in the exigency of the service upon
recommendation of the chief, PNP. Such case shall be subject to
continuous trial and shall be terminated within ninety (90) days
from arraignment of the accused."
Sec. 56. Sec. 49 of Republic Act No. 6975 is hereby amended to read
as follows:
cralaw

"SEC. 49. Legal assistance. — The Secretary of Justice, the chairman

of the Commission or the Chief of the PNP may authorize lawyers of
their respective agencies to provide legal assistance to any member
of the PNP who is facing before the prosecutor's office, the court or
any competent body, a charge or charges arising from any incident
which is related to the performance of his official duty: Provided,
That government lawyers so authorized shall have the power to
administer oaths: Provided, further, That in such cases, when
necessary, as determined by the Commission, a private counsel may
be provided at the expense of the Government. The Secretary of
Justice, the Chairman of the Commission and the Chief of the PNP
shall jointly promulgate rules and regulations to implement the
provisions of this Sec.."
 C. ATTRITION SYSTEM
FOR UNIFORMED PERSONNEL

Sec. 24. Attrition system. — There shall be established a system of

attrition within the uniformed members of the PNP within one (1)
year from the effectivity of this Act to be submitted by the PNP to
the Commission for approval. Such attrition system shall include but
is not limited to the provisions of the following Sec.s.

Sec. 25. Attrition by attainment of maximum tenure in position. —

The maximum tenure of PNP members holding key positions is
hereby prescribed as follows:

POSITION MAXIMUM TENURE

Chief four (4) years

Deputy Chief four (4) years
Director of the Staff Services four (4) years
Regional Directors six (6) years
Provincial/City Directors nine (9) years

Other positions higher than Provincial Director shall have the

maximum tenure of six (6) years. Unless earlier separated, retired
or promoted to a higher position in accordance with the PNP
Staffing Pattern, police officers holding the above-mentioned
positions shall be compulsorily retired at the maximum tenure in
position herein prescribed, or at age fifty-six (56), whichever is
earlier: Provided, That in times of war or other national emergency
declared by Congress, the President may extend the PNP Chief's
tour of duty: Provided, further, That PNP members who have
already reached their maximum tenure upon the effectivity of this
Act may be allowed one (1) year more of tenure in their positions
before the maximum tenure provided in this Sec. shall be applied to
them, unless they shall have already reached the compulsory
retirement age of fifty-six (56), in which case the compulsory
retirement age shall prevail.

Except for the Chief, PNP, no PNP member who has less than one (1)
year of service before reaching the compulsory retirement age shall
be promoted to a higher rank or appointed to any other position.

Sec. 26. Attrition by relief. — A PNP uniformed personnel who has

been relieved for just cause and has not been given an assignment
within two (2) years after such relief shall be retired or separated.

Sec. 27. Attrition by demotion in position or rank. — Any PNP

personnel, civilian or uniformed, who is relieved and assigned to a
position lower than what is established for his or her grade in the
PNP staffing pattern and who shall not be assigned to a position
commensurate to his or her grade within eighteen (18) months after
such demotion in position shall be retired or separated.

Sec. 28. Attrition by non-promotion. — Any PNP personnel who has

not been promoted for a continuous period of ten (10) years shall be
retired or separated.

Sec. 29. Attrition by other means. — A PNP member or officer with

at least five (5) years of accumulated active service shall be
separated based on any of the following factors:cralaw

a) inefficiency based on poor performance during the last two (2)

successive annual rating periods;

b) inefficiency based on poor performance for three (3) cumulative

annual rating periods;

c) physical and/or mental incapacity to perform police functions and

duties; or

d) failure to pass the required entrance examinations twice and/or

finish the required career courses except for justifiable reasons.
Sec. 30. Retirement or separation under the preceding Sec.s. — Any
personnel who is dismissed from the PNP pursuant to Sec.s 25, 26,
27, 28 and 29 hereof shall be retired if he or she has rendered at
least twenty (20) years of service and separated if he or she has
rendered less than twenty (20) years of service unless the
personnel is disqualified by law to receive such benefits.