Saturday, July 26, 2008 Camp Crame, 2 other AFP properties turned over to police
THE Philippine National Police (PNP) can now rightfully claim legal ownership of about 1,160 hectares of land registered as real property of the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP).
A memorandum of agreement (MOA) was signed in Camp Crame, Quezon City last Friday between Interior and Local Government Secretary Ronaldo Puno, Defense Secretary Gilbert Teodoro Jr., PNP Chief Avelino Razon Jr., and AFP Vice Chief of Staff Cardozo Luna formalizing the transfer of 286 parcels of AFP land to the PNP.
These include the 33-hectare Camp Crame, the national headquarters of the PNP which has since been a property of the AFP when the police was still the Constabulary branch of the military.
Other AFP real properties transferred to the PNP under the MOA are Camp Bagong Diwa in Bicutan, Taguig City, the regional headquarters of the National Capital Region Police Office (NCRPO); and Camp Castañeda in Silang, Cavite, the training facility of the Philippine National Police Academy (PNPA).
The 286 parcels of land are situated in different locations, mostly occupied and being used by the PNP as regional or provincial police offices, provincial mobile group headquarters, and training facilities.
Prior to the establishment of the PNP in 1991, these properties were once the regional command, provincial command or company headquarters of the defunct Philippine Constabulary.
At present, there are 3,400 hectares of government-owned land that are being used jointly by the PNP and AFP.
According to Puno, it is important for the PNP to acquire lawful ownership of these properties in order to initiate infrastructure developments in these facilities, particularly on-base housing for police personnel.
"The PNP on-base housing which we have funds and great need for, will now be possible. Before, we cannot do housing programs within these properties as authorized by the President (Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo) because we are not in a position to turn over titles and take possession of property," Puno explained.
For his part, Razon said "the PNP welcomes the formal transfer of these properties after 18 years that we had been working to officially acquire these facilities to implement our own program in the PNP." (VR/Sunnex)
