QuestionsQuestions (PNP CIRCULAR NO. 2008-005)
To prescribe the guidelines in handling Absence Without Official Leave (AWOL)/Neglect of Duty offenses incurred by PNP uniformed personnel.
It is the status of an official or employee who absents himself from work without approved leave of absence.
It is a non-disciplinary administrative sanction deleting the PNP member’s name from the roster. Being non-disciplinary, it does not result in forfeiture of benefits and does not require the stringent observance of due process.
Examples include: (1) absence from place of work/assignment without approved leave; (2) abandonment of work/assignment without prior approval; (3) failure to report for duty after expiration of approved leave; (4) failure to notify superior of inability to report due to sickness/injury or failure to file proper sick leave with medical certificate; (5) failure to report to new assignment/unit within three (3) days from receipt of reassignment order.
If AWOL is for five (5) calendar days or more but not to exceed thirty (30) calendar days, the PNP member shall be dropped from the rolls after due notice, following the procedure under the Circular.
He shall be dropped from the rolls without prior notice, but he must be informed of the separation not later than five (5) days from effectivity, sent to his address in his latest 201 file.
After five (5) calendar days from the start of AWOL, the immediate superior serves written notice directing the member to report/return for work within three (3) days from receipt, warning that failure/refusal is a valid ground to drop him from the rolls.
The immediate superior must submit, through proper channel and within three (3) days, a report with recommendation to drop the member from the rolls. The competent PNP authority then evaluates records and issues the order if meritorious.
He is still considered in the service and may be allowed to report back to duty, subject to the outcome of the administrative case.
Yes. Orders issued by the Chief PNP, Regional Directors, and delegated officers are immediately executory without prejudice to a Motion for Reconsideration or appeal. The member may file one (1) motion for reconsideration within three (3) days from receipt; denial by the Regional Director/delegated officer is appealable to the Chief PNP within three (3) days.
Immediately upon issuance of the order: salary and other allowances are stopped, name stricken from records, AWOL period deducted from leave credits, and firearms/accouterments including PNP Identification Card and Police Badge recalled.
The member is restored to his former position with entitlement to all benefits and allowances he failed to receive during the period of absence.
No. The Circular prohibits simultaneous recourse to both modes: once dropping from the rolls is resorted to as separation from the service, the police officer can no longer be charged for Serious Neglect of Duty arising from the same AWOL and vice-versa.
Generally no. Reinstatement should not be used to acquire jurisdiction to charge. Reinstatement is only proper if the member’s timely and/or meritorious MR or appeal to the Chief PNP is granted.
Only one (1) MR is allowed and must be filed within three (3) days from receipt. Failure to file MR and/or appeal within the reglementary period is a cause for denial.
While dropping from the rolls is non-disciplinary and not a disqualification from reemployment, it is considered a derogatory record and may affect reappointment/reemployment at the discretion of the appointing authority (guided by case law on timely assertion of rights, and considering laches).