Question & AnswerQ&A (EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 280)
The Task Force shall be headed by the Chief of the Intelligence Service, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP), assisted by a Philippine National Police (PNP) officer as Deputy Task Force Commander for Intelligence/Operations, and a National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) official as Deputy Task Force Commander for Investigation and Legal Affairs.
The Task Force primarily targets scalawags in the AFP and other law enforcement agencies involved in criminal activities such as kidnap for ransom, bank robbery, drug trafficking, gunrunning, and carnapping, with an emphasis on organized big-time criminal groups.
The Task Force is empowered to conduct intelligence and counterintelligence operations, cause or direct the arrest and prosecution of military and police personnel involved in criminal activities, refer cases to other law enforcement agencies, monitor ongoing investigations, recommend anti-crime measures, and conduct special anti-crime operations as directed by the President.
Component forces are composed of elements from the PNP, NBI, Department of Justice (DOJ), National Intelligence Coordinating Agency (NICA), AFP major service counterintelligence units, ISAFP, and other concerned units. They are directly under the control of the Task Force Commander and report daily to the Task Force Headquarters.
The Task Force Commander reports directly to the President, exercises supervision and control over all component forces, selects personnel, and issues orders. Each component unit Commander reports directly to the Task Force Commander.
The Task Force is provided an initial allocation of Twenty Million Pesos (P20,000,000) from the Office of the President's contingency fund or government savings for 1995, and additional funds for 1996 and beyond as approved by the President and included in the annual government budget.
Operations must focus on scalawags involved in criminal activities, prioritize destroying organized crime syndicates, obtain prior clearance from the Task Force Commander for all operations, and ensure efforts aim to bring suspects to justice. Component forces have first rights to investigate scalawags within their units.
Yes, Section 3 authorizes the Task Force to enlist assistance from any branch, department, bureau, office, agency, or government-owned or controlled corporation in performing its functions.
The national organizational setup is to be replicated regionally, with Regional Task Groups created outside the National Capital Region (NCR) prioritized in selected regions such as Region 9, Region 12, ARMM, Region 7, Region 6, Region 3, and Region 4. Regional Task Group Commanders are Assistant Group Commanders of the Field Military Intelligence Groups, ISAFP.