PHILIPPINE National Police (PNP) chief, General Dionardo B. Carlos on Sunday named Lieutenant Gen. Rhodel O. Sermonia and Lt. Gen. Ferdinand O. Divina as the new PNP Deputy Chiefs for Administration and Operations, the Journal Group learned.

The new changes came in the wake of the decision of PNP-DCA, Lt. Gen. Israel Ephraim T. Dickson to go on non-duty status prior to his retirement at the age of 56 on March 27.

Dickson got the post last Tuesday with the retirement of erstwhile PNP-DCA, Lt. Gen. Joselito M. Vera Cruz on March 8. Both members of Philippine Military Academy (PMA) ‘Hinirang’ Class of 1987 were temporarily reassigned to the Office of the Chief,PNP prior to their actual retirement day.

Erstwhile National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO) director, Major Gen. Vicente D. Danao Jr. was named by Gen. Carlos new PNP The Chief Directorial Staff or TCDS, the 4thhighest position in the PNP. Retiring on August 10, 2023, Danao of PMA ‘Sambisig’ Class of 1991 will get his 3rd-star as PNP-TCDS.

With his new position, Sermonia of PMA ‘Makatao’ Class of 1989 will be the 2nd highest official in the 225,000-strong police force. Sermonia will retire on January 26, 2024.

Lt. Gen. Divina, erstwhile Area Police Command-Southern Luzon commander, became the 3rd highest-ranked PNP official.

Divina is a classmate from PMA ‘Maringal’ Class of 1988 of Gen. Carlos. Divina will retire this coming May 2 or six days before the retirement day of Gen. Carlos.

Lt. Gen. Sermonia on Thursday was designated by Gen. Carlos as the new commander of the Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield following his designation as PNP-DCO.

As the new PNP-DCA, Lt. Gen. Sermonia is expected to head the PNP Administrative Support for Joint COVID-19 Task Force formerly headed by Lt. Gen. Vera Cruz.

On the other hand, Lt. Gen. Divina will be the new Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield commander or the head of the enforcement arm of the national government in the implementation of quarantine rules and health protocols.

The new Joint Task Force COVID-19 Shield commander is expected to continue the plans and programs of the previous commander and enforce minimum health protocols for us to fully mitigate the deadly virus.

The JTF COVID-19 Shield is composed of members of the PNP, Armed Forces of the Philippines, Philippine Coast Guard and Bureau of Fire Protection.

Gen. Carlos has ordered the strict monitoring of movement of people in public areas in Metro Manila and 38 other places in the country which have been placed under Alert Level 1 until March 15 to prevent the further spread of the virus.

The NCRPO now headed by Major Gen. Felipe R. Natividad is also maintaining its vigilance on quarantine violators.

Since last March 1, more than 3,000 individuals have been warned because of minimum public health standard violations while 861 were ordered to pay fines for violation of local ordinances in their areas.

Gen. Carlos said Quarantine Control Points established under the previous higher alert level can be converted to law enforcement checkpoints or Comelec-supervised gun ban checkpoints upon proper coordination with the Inter-Agency Task Force.

He said that some 6,800 PNP personnel were previously deployed in QCPs across the country and could be used to strictly enforce the nationwide prohibition on the unauthorized carrying of firearms and other deadly weapons during the election period.

The top cop said they have also observed heavier traffic flow in areas under Alert Level 1 with more private vehicles going out to the streets and public transport is now allowed to carry passengers in full capacity.

“We are coordinating with the different government agencies and offices to better monitor the traffic flow and assist in the enforcement of traffic rules,” Gen. Carlos said.