YEAR 2022 saw the Philippine National Police (PNP) scoring a series of milestones amid the many challenges brought about by the pandemic, the peaceful and fair May national and local elections and the new crime trends.

However, just like the proverbial Phoenix, the 226,000-strong police force managed to carry on with its job with full determination to succeed amid a high approval rating given by the public in yearlong surveys.

The year that passed saw the force being commanded by three Philippine Military Academy (PMA) graduates: now retired General Dionardo B. Carlos from January to May 8; followed by Lieutenant Gen. Vicente D. Danao Jr. who was the PNP Officer-in-Charge from May 8 to August 1 until President Ferdinand ‘Bongbong’ R. Marcos Jr. appointed Gen. Rodolfo S. Azurin Jr. to be his 1sttop cop, actually the 28th PNP chief.

This year, Gen. Azurin said they are more determined to ensure the safety of the nation with the high approval ratings given by the public as shown by a Pulse Asia survey last September 22.

The performance of the current administration was assessed based on a number of key issues and 67 percent of the respondents fully approved of the government’s effort in ‘fighting criminality’ which is actually the PNP’s domain.

The improved ranking of The Philippines in the ‘order and security’ parameters of the global rule of law in 2022 was also evident in the World Justice Project report released last October 26.

It showed that the country ranked 97th out of 140 countries or five notches higher from its 102nd rank in 2021. Much credit to the country’s improved international ranking on rule of law index was given to the PNP which has embarked on a massive policing reforms to uphold justice

“The PNP takes pride in its own initiatives at reforming police systems and procedures to cope with the ever-changing demand for better police service to the communities. Law enforcement to become effective must be founded on respect for human rights and the rule of law,” Gen. Azurin said in the aftermath of the WJP report.

The top cop said that The Philippines’ improvement in “order and security” parameters as noted by the WJP is a fair statement and objective acknowledgment of the initiatives of the national institution in upholding the rule of law in its enforcement, prosecution, judiciary, corrections, and community pillars of the criminal justice system.

The WJP report said that while 85 out of 140 countries saw a decline in the rule of law index, The Philippines is among a few countries that surpassed its own previous ranking in the February to June 2022 survey of the organization conducted among 154,000 households and 3,600 legal practitioners.

The rule of law index is measured through eight parameters — constraints on government powers, absence of corruption, open government, fundamental rights, order and security, regulatory enforcement, civil justice and criminal justice.

Gen. Azurin said they also recorded a 14.42 percent reduction in the country’s total crime volume in 2022 compared to that in 2021.

Citing. records from the PNP Directorate for Investigation and Detective Management, the top cop in particular said that the overall number of crimes in The. Philippines significantly went down this month compared to the figures recorded in December 2021.

He attributed the major crime rate drop to their maximum deployment of people, the spirit of their Kasimbayanan program which calls on enhanced partnership between the police force, the church and the public and their stepped up campaign against drugs thru the Buhay ay Ingatan, Droga’s Iwasan or BIDA program of the Department of Interior and Local Government headed by Secretary Benjamin ‘Benhur’ C. Abalos Jr.

According to the PNP chief, the PNP-DIDM record showed that the national Total Crime Volume dropped from 10,643 cases in 2021 to 9,108 cases in 2022.

The eight focus crimes which include murder, homicide, physical injury, robbery, theft, vehicle theft, motorcycle theft, and rape have an overall decrease of 694 or 29.79 percent from 2,330 in 2021 to 1,636 this year comparing same period.

“Among these eight focus crimes, the top three most prevalent crimes from December 1 to 20, 2022, were theft, rape and physical injury with recorded cases of 609, 262 and 211 which is lower than the previous year, with 710, 567 and 331 cases respectively, ” Gen. Azurin said.

The PNP chief attributed the downward trend in crimes to the maximum deployment of PNP personnel nationwide especially during the recent long holiday season where the community really felt maximum police presence everywhere.

He also attributed it to their stepped-up partnership with the religious sector and the community and the simultaneous launching and roll-out of the DILG’s BIDA program which has been the centerpiece of a more aggressive anti-illegal drugs campaign by PBBM’s government.

Further, Gen. Azurin said that crime solution efficiency for 2022 has improved as compared to the previous year and it can be attributed to the E-Projects such as the e-Rouge, e-Blotter, e-Warrant, and the dedication and passion of investigators.

Based on the DIDM data, the Crime Solution Efficiency (CSE) in 2021 improved by 3.93 percent from 78.54 percent to 82.47 percent this year.

“I commend all the members of the Philippine National Police for doing their job excellently that led to these accomplishments. Amid the great odds and overwhelming challenges, we assure the public that we will sustain the momentum and further improve our deliverables for the benefit of our main clientele, the Filipino people. Tulong-tulong tayong panatilihing maayos at payapa ang ating kumunidad tungo sa isang bansang maunlad at nagkakaisa,” Gen. Azurin said.