CREATING A PRESIDENTIAL TASK FORCE ON INTELLIGENCE AND COUNTER-INTELLIGENCE TO IDENTIFY, ARREST AND CAUSE THE INVESTIGATION AND PROSECUTION OF MILITARY AND OTHER LAW ENFORCEMENT…

WHEREAS, the crime situation in the
country continues to defy meaningful solution even as it tends to undermine the
gains the government has made in its economic recovery effort;

WHEREAS, the public views with deep
concern the alarming increase in heinous crimes, particularly kidnap for
ransom, bank robbery, and other organized crimes;

WHEREAS, current statistics from the
Presidential Anti-Crime Commission show that 40% of organized crimes committed
involve scalawags in the military and law enforcement agencies, either active,
discharged from the service or absent without leave.

WHEREAS, the government drive against
criminality will encounter difficulty unless these scalawags and their cohorts
are identified, arrested, prosecuted and put to jail;

WHEREAS, there is a need to organize an
intelligence and counterintelligence task force dedicated for the purpose of
identifying, arresting and effectively prosecuting scalawags in the military
and other law enforcement agencies.

WHEREAS, based on experience, the
creation of a counterintelligence unit in the AFP dedicated to the
neutralization and prosecution of scalawags in the AFP has been successful,
thus raising the possibility that counterintelligence operations can be
expanded to cover all law enforcing agencies engaged in the anti-crime drive;

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FIDEL V. RAMOS,
President of the Philippines, by virtue of the powers vested in me by law, do
hereby order:

SECTION 1. Organization. There is
hereby created a Presidential Task Force on Intelligence and
Counterintelligence Against Scalawags.

SEC. 2. Leadership Composition and
Organizational Structure. The Task Force shall be headed by the Chief,
Intelligence Service, Armed Forces of the Philippines, assisted by a PNP
officer who shall serve as the Deputy Task Force Commander for
Intelligence/Operations, and an NBI Official who shall be designated as the
Deputy Task Force Commander for Investigation and Legal Affairs. Structurally,
the Task Force shall be organized as follows:

a. Directly under the Task Force Commander are the
Executive Officer and a functional staff that shall assist the Task Force
Commander in the implementation, supervision and orchestration of Task Force policies
and orders within their respective functional areas.

b. A Task Force Operations Center (TFOC) shall be
created to monitor and orchestrate the day-to-day operational activities of the
Task Force. It shall be manned by elements from the different agencies
involved.

c. Component force shall be organized separately to
be composed of competent and dedicated elements from the PNP, NBI, DOJ, NICA,
AFP Major Service CI Units, ISAFP and other units/agencies concerned, as may be
deemed necessary. They shall be directly under the provision and control of the
Task Force Commander.

d. The national organizational setup shall be
replicated or similarly organized in the regions except the National Capital
Region which shall be placed under the jurisdiction of the NCR-based national
organization. The creation of the Regional Task Groups outside NCR shall be
phased in and selectively determined according to operational necessity. Among
the regions which will be given priority after NCR are Region 9, Region 12, the
Autonomous Region for Muslim Mindanao (ARMM), Region 7, Region 6, Region 3, and
Region 4. Other regions may follow as the need arises.

e. The Assistant Group Commanders of the Field
Military Intelligence Groups, ISAFP, shall act as the Regional Task Group Commander
for their respective regions.

f. Transportation, communications, firearms and
individual equipment of personnel of the component forces shall be provided by
their respective mother agencies.

SEC. 3. Coordination. The
Task Force is hereby authorized to enlist the assistance of any branch,
department, bureau, office, agency or instrumentality of the Government,
including government-owed and/or controlled corporations in the performance of
its functions.

SEC. 4. Command and Control. The
line of command and control of the Task Force is as follows.

a. The Task Force Commander shall report and be
directly responsible to the President.

b. The Task Force Commander shall have direct
responsibility, supervision and control over all component forces of the Task Force.
He is hereby authorized to select and  designate all the personnel who
will work under him.

c. The component forces/elements from the NBI, PNP,
DOJ, NICA and AFP Service Counterintelligence Units must be attached and
assigned to the Task force, i.e., their respective mother units shall
provide/assign a permanent force to the Task Force. The component force so
attached and assigned shall hold office or report to the Task Force
Headquarters daily. The Task Force Commander shall have directive and supervisory
authority over them.

d. Each component force shall have a designated
Commander who shall directly be responsible for his unit. He shall report and
receive orders directly from the Task Force Commander.

SEC. 5. Powers and Functions. The Task
Force shall have the following powers and functions:

a. Conduct intelligence and counterintelligence
operations to detect and identify active and former military and police
personnel and their cohorts involved in criminal activities.

b. Cause or direct the immediate arrest,
investigation and speedy prosecution of such military and police personnel and
their cohorts in accordance with constitutional processes.

c. Refer the case at hand, as the Task Force may
deem proper and necessary, in the interest of efficient and expeditious
dispensation of criminal justice, to the Presidential Anti-Crime Commission
(PACC) and/or other appropriate law enforcement agency or prosecution office,
for investigation or prosecution, as the case may be.

d. Monitor the progress of on-going investigation
and prosecution of cases taken cognizance of by the Task Force.

e. Recommend appropriate anti-crime issuances and
legislation to the President, PACC and Congress.

f. Conduct other special anti-crime operations as
the President may direct.

SEC. 6. Duties and Tasks. The
Personnel and component units of the Task Force shall perform the following
duties and tasks:

a. Task Force Commander. Principally
responsible for the successful implementation of Task Force mission and
functions, directs and supervises the overall conduct of Task Force operations
and perform such other functions as the President may direct.

b. Deputy Task Force Commander for
Intelligence/Operations. Assists and advises the Task Force Commander on
matters pertaining to intelligence/operations.

[DIAGRAM I – Proposed
Organizational Structure of Task Force “Hammerhead”]

c. Deputy Task Force Commander for Legal and
Investigation. Assists and advises the Task Force Commander on legal and
investigation matters.

d. Executive Officer. Principal Staff
Adviser of the Task Force Command. Supervises and ensures that all policies and
instructions of the Task Force Commander are properly implemented by concerned
staff officers; ensures the normal and smooth functioning and coordination of
staffs.

e. Working Staff. Advises and is responsible
to the Commander on various matters including personnel, supply and logistics
requirements, technical and signal support, intelligence/operations, and
legal/investigation matters.

f. Task Force Operations Center (TFCOC).
Monitors the day to day operational activities of the Task Force.

g. DOJ Component. Directly responsible for
the prosecution of cases and securing Warrants of Arrest and Search Warrants.

h. NICA/PNP/NBI/AFP Major Service and ISAFP CI
Units and Other Components. Conduct case buildup and counteraction
operations against targeted personalities/syndicates. Gather, collect and
preserve pieces of evidence for use against targeted suspects.

i. Regional Task Groups (RTG’s). Conduct
case buildup, counteraction operations and prosecution of targeted criminal
syndicates in their respective AORs.

SEC. 7. Operating Guidelines. – In
the implementation of this Executive Order, the Task Force must follow the
following guidelines:

a. The Task Force shall focus its efforts primarily
against scalawags in the AFP and other law enforcement agencies, or their
former members, involved in criminal activities although in the process, the
Task Force can initiate neutralization measures against their associates and
accomplices in these crime syndicates.

b. The destruction of organized big-time criminal
groups/syndicates involving military, police and former military or police
personnel shall be the operational priority of the Task Force. Along this line,
it shall direct its efforts against the following criminal activities.

c. All operations conducted shall have prior
clearance and knowledge of the Task Force Commander. The Intelligence and
Operation Officer shall closely monitor and supervise the conduct of the
operation.

d. On orders/instructions of the Task Force
Commander, component forces may operate either independently or jointly
depending on the nature of the target and operational necessity or
practicality.

e. Respective component forces will be given the
first opportunity to conduct investigation/case build-up of identified
scalawags in their respective units/agencies.

f. Counteraction operations conducted against
target personalities are primarily aimed at bringing the suspects to the bar of
justice for successful prosecution.

SEC. 8. Funding. The Task
Force shall be provided with an initial allocation of TWENTY MILLION PESOS
(P20,000,000) to be drawn from the Office of the President’s contingency fund
and/or from the government’s savings for CY 1995, and such amount as may be
approved by the President to be drawn from the Contingency Fund for CY 1996,
thereafter to be included in the annual budget of the government.

SEC. 9. Effectivity. This
Executive Order shall take effect immediately.

DONE in the City of Manila, this 16th day of October in
the year of Our Lord, Nineteen Hundred and Ninety-Five.

(Sgd.) FIDEL V. RAMOS
President of the Philippines

By the
President:

(Sgd.) RUBEN
D. TORRES
Executive Secretary

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