ON April 24, President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ R. Marcos Jr. will be appointing his 2nd chief of the Philippine National Police (PNP)—or the 29th top cop since the PNP was created in 1991-unless he extends the term of General Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr..

As the law say, extending the term of a sitting PNP chief or appointing another one from any of the one-star up to three-star police generals will always be a prerogative of the Chief Executive as the Commander-in-Chief, people must understand.

However, Gen. Azurin, a member of Philippine Military Academy (PMA)‘Makatao’ Class of 1989 will undoubtedly leave an indelible ink as the 28th PNP chief, having proven his worth as a top cop with his M+K+K=K program anchored at having an ideal partnership between the police force, the Church and the community in order to ensure peace and order crucial in the country’s progress, and for having really served the nation with pride and honor.

The appointment of the next PNP chief will be crucial since he will not only be leading the organization’s war on drugs, criminality, terror and corruption but will be appointed on a time that the entire country is preparing for the scheduled Sangguniang Kabataan and Barangay elections. 2022 national and local elections.

Many officials have agreed with the assertion of the Journal Group that next to the President, the Chief, PNP is considered to be the 2nd most powerful official in the country, having in his command the 227,000-strong police force which has presence in virtually all part of the country or from Aparri to Jolo.

The PNP chief must possess the competency and integrity to handle the job as he will be answerable to the PNP’s internal and external audience. He should have the dogged determination to do the job, the needed track record and service reputation, a ton of contribution to the country’s peace and order campaign, and most importantly, the loyalty to the Constitution and duly-constituted authorities.

The law says that the President, as Commander-in-Chief, shall appoint the PNP chief from among a list prepared by the Napolcom of ‘the most senior and qualified officers in the service” given that the prospect appointee has not yet retired or within six months from their compulsory retirement age.

The law also says that the “lowest rank of a qualified appointee shall be the rank of Police Brigadier General. As PNP chief and ex-officio member of the Napolcom, the Chief PNP is given the power to command and direct the police force.

Since 1991 to date, the PNP already had 28 chiefs, the 1st being the late Gen. Cesar P. Nazareno and the 28th being Gen. Azurin. All the PNP chiefs the country has had since 1991 were all products of the prestigious Baguio City-based Fort del Pilar, the home of the PMA.

President Marcos really has to make a brilliant decision when it comes to choosing the next Chief, PNP who must have the good service reputation, sterling service record, untarnished integrity and the most important of them all, loyalty to the Constitution and the duly-constituted authorities.

If seniority were to be the basis of the presidential decision, the most logical successors to Gen. Azurin would be members of his Command Group: his mistah from PMA Class 1989, PNP Deputy Chief for Administration, Lieutenant Gen. Rhodel O. Sermonia; PNP Deputy Chief for Operations, Major Gen. Jonnel C. Estomo; and PNP The Chief of Directorial Staff, Lt. Gen. Michael John F. Dubria.

Sermonia will be retiring from the police force on January 26 next year while Estomo, a member of PMA ‘Tanglaw-Diwa’ Class of 1992 who is now the country’s 3rd highest police official, will leave the service on November 25, 2024.

Lt. Gen. Dubria of PMA ‘Sambisig’ Class of 1991 will retire on December 20, 2024.

If Lt. Gen. Sermonia will be picked by the President, he will have nine months to lead the force. If it would be Maj. Gen. Estomo, he will be the PNP chief for 19 months while if it would be Lt. Gen. Dubria, he will serve for 20 months.

However, Republic Act 8551 or the PNP Reform and Reorganization Act of 1998 says that “Except for the Chief, PNP, no PNP member who has less than one year of service before reaching the compulsory retirement age shall be promoted to a higher rank or appointed to any other position.”

By looking at that provision, other senior generals who will be retiring from the force weeks from now may also qualify for the race. They include the other classmates of Gen. Azurin from PMA Class 1989: Major Gen. Jesus D. Cambay Jr. and Valeriano T. de Leon; the members of PMA ‘Bigkis Lahi’ Class of 1990 led by Lt. Gen. Felipe R. Natividad and Maj. Gen. Eliseo DC Cruz and the other members of PMA Class 1991 including Lt. Generals Filmore B. Escobal, Vicente D. Danao Jr. and Patrick T. Villacorte.

But clearly, it should also be considered that the President’s trust and confidence will always play a major role in his decision plus the recommendation from his most trusted lieutenants and security officers including Department of Interior and Local Government Secretary Benjamin ‘Benhur’ C. Abalos Jr. and Gen. Azurin himself.

That brings to the fore other police generals from PMA who are now holding key positions in the force. Two of them are PNP Director for Intelligence, Major Gen. Benjamin C. Acorda Jr., also of PMA Class 1991 and Police Regional Office 4-A director, Brigadier Gen. Jose Melencio C. Nartatez Jr., a member of PMA ‘Tanglaw-Diwa’ Class of 1992 who will be the last member of a PMA class in the PNP to retire. Brig. Gen. Nartatez will retire on March 19, 2027.

Maj. Gen. Acorda and Brig. Gen. Nartatez trace their roots in the Ilocos region, the Solid North and have served with distinction in the region.

Apart from their good performance, the two are also known to be being backed by President Marcoses’ most trusted aides and confidantes.

Acorda however will be retiring from the force on December 3, giving him less than eight months to lead the organization in case he gets the nod of the President. Brig. Gen. Nartatez still has four years to left in the service as he is the youngest among all the contenders.

The Journal Group will run a series on the contenders to replace Gen. Azurin beginning with Lt. Gen. Sermonia.