The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
The Senate is considering shifting the implementation of Philippine National Police (PNP) infrastructure projects back to the police organization after an audit flagged nearly ₱8.9 billion worth of projects for documentation, recording and completion issues.
Senate President Win Gatchalian raised the proposal during the Senate hearing on the Department of the Interior and Local Government’s (DILG) proposed 2027 budget, citing a Commission on Audit (COA) report covering projects under the PNP’s TIKAS program that were implemented by the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).
“According to this COA (Commission on Audit) report, almost PHP8.9 billion, this is about 331 projects, is either unrecorded, incomplete supporting documents, or uncompleted,” Gatchalian said.
The findings have raised questions over whether the current arrangement, where the PNP identifies and requests projects while the DPWH handles implementation, provides enough accountability for police infrastructure spending.
Gatchalian said similar concerns were already raised during last year’s budget deliberations, when senators learned that coordination problems had affected projects intended for police camps and facilities.
He said allowing the PNP to bid out and implement its own infrastructure projects could make it easier to monitor construction and determine which office should be held responsible for delays, incomplete work or missing documentation.
“Ganitong pag-transfer sa PNP, effective ba? O mas prefer n’yo pa rin sa DPWH (Is this transfer to the PNP effective? Or do you still prefer DPWH)? It’s for accountability,” Gatchalian asked.
PNP chief Gen. Jose Melencio Nartatez Jr. said the police organization has started accounting for projects covered by TIKAS and other convergence funds implemented through the DPWH.
“Upon my assumption, I already accounted or asked the different units in the PNP to account all of the projects that are covered with TIKAS,” Nartatez said.
He acknowledged that while the PNP requested the projects, actual implementation was undertaken by the DPWH.
“It’s true that we have requested those projects, but those projects are being implemented by the DPWH,” he said.
Gatchalian said some project items had been returned to the DPWH but raised the possibility of transferring them once again to the PNP, subject to approval from the Senate finance committee leadership.
“We’ll transfer again itong mga (these) items with the permission, of course, of our finance chair, to the PNP,” he said.
Nartatez said the PNP would be more effective in implementing projects that directly benefit police units.
The proposed realignment is being considered as senators review the DILG and PNP’s funding requirements for 2027, including infrastructure needs for police facilities across the country.
The issue puts a spotlight on a broader concern in government infrastructure spending: ensuring that appropriated funds translate into properly documented, completed and usable public assets.
For the Senate, the question is therefore not only how much money should be allocated for police infrastructure, but also which agency can deliver projects more efficiently and be held accountable for their completion.
The Senate finance panel is expected to consider the possible realignment as it continues deliberations on the DILG’s 2027 budget before the measure is endorsed for plenary consideration.