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DILG

Republic of the Philippines Department of the Interior and Local Government

BUREAU OF FIRE PROTECTION NATIONAL HEADQUARTERS

Agham Road, Barangay Bagong Pag-asa, Quezon City Telefax Number: (02) 426 - 4399

Email: ofcbfp@gmail.com

11 MARCH 2019MEMORANDUM CIRCULARNO. 2019-002_____

SUBJECT: POLICY GUIDELINES IN THE REASSIGNMENT, DESIGNATION, AND DETAIL OF PERSONNEL IN THE BUREAU OF FIRE PROTECTION (BFP)

RULE I. SCOPE:

This Circular shall apply to reassignment, designation and detail of personnel

in the Bureau of Fire Protection.

RULE II. OBJECTIVES:

a. To promote transparency and accountability, and upholding the integrity of such personnel actions, with end view of enhancing professionalism and

organizational effectiveness in the BFP.

b To prescribe criteria based on merit and fitness and adopt a standard procedure in evaluating the qualifications of candidates for reass|grl^®|]t’ designation to a certain position in the BFP and detai1 c;onf Q™the provisions of Republic Act No. 9263 as amended by Republic Act No. 9592.

c. To establish reasonable and valid measures of assessing the competencies and qualifications of all candidates competing for a particular designation.

d. To create equal access and opportunity for professional growth a^d career advancement for qualified, competent, and deserving officers in the BFP.

e. To make BFP Officers well-rounded in the diverse functions of the a9®n(^y through harmonious rotation to prescribed positions and geographical duty

areas. ,

RULE III. AUTHORITY:

i. 2017 Omnibus Rules on Appointments and Other Human Resource Actionsa.

(revised July 2018);

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b. Republic Act No. 9263, “Bureau of Fire Protection and Management and Penology Professionalization Act of Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR); and

Bureau of Jail 2004” and its

c. DILG Circular No. 2018-29 dated 09 November 2018, re: Amendment to Circular No. 2018-18, re: Delegation of Authority - Interior Sector.

RULE IV. DEFINITION OF TERMS:

a. ADMINISTRATIVE POSITIONS involves purely clerical, staff and managerial functions. It includes assignment to Office of the Provincial Fire Marshal, Office of the Regional Director, National Headquarters, and other support units.

b. COMMISSIONED OFFICERS - active BFP uniformed personnel with the rank of INSPECTOR up to DIRECTOR.

c. CANDIDATE - any qualified BFP personnel considered, recommended, and endorsed for a certain reassignment, designation and detail.

d. DESIGNATION - is merely an imposition of additional duties to be performed by a public official which is temporary in nature and can be terminated anytime at the pleasure of the appointing authority (Rule III, Section 6.e, MC

No. 15, s. 1999).

e. FIELD POSITIONS - positions performing the one of the mandates of the agency, i.e fire suppression, emergency medical and rescue services, fire safety inspection, fire arson investigation and fire prevention campaign. It includes assignment to fire stations and other operating units. Assignment to training units, such as: NFTl, PNPA, PPSC, etc. shall be considered field position.

f. FITNESS - refers to the appropriateness or suitability of an officer to occupy a particular position, as determined from an established set of criteria.

g- GEOGRAPHICAL DUTY ASSIGNMENT - refers to the location and/or nature of unit assignment of personnel which will be used as one of the bases for evaluation of the weil-roundedness of an officer. Geographical duty assignments shall be classified as urban or rural, national, and regional or local.

KEY POSITIONS IN THE BFP - refer to the positions of major responsibility over an office or unit. The key positions in the BFP under Republic Act No. 9263 are as follows:

Chief, Bureau of Fire Protection Deputy Chief for Administration Deputy Chief for Operations Chief of the Directorial Staff Directors of the Directorates

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Regional DirectorsAssistant Regional Director for Administration Assistant Regional Director for Operation Regional Chief of Staff Provincial/District Fire Marshal City/Municipa! Fire Marshal

i. LINE OFFICERS - Commissioned Officers performing the mandates of the agency, i.e fire suppression, emergency medical and rescue services, fire safety inspection, fire arson investigation, fire prevention campaign and related administrative work. For purposes of determining their respective competencies vis-a-vis selection and placement, line officers may be classified as either Command Line Officers or Staff Line Officers.

1. Command Line - line officers who have held or are qualified to hold key positions in the BFP because of their command, leadership and managerial competence, well-rounded experience in administrative and field duty and diversified geographical assignment.

2. Staff Line - line officers who have specialized in a particular fire suppression skill or functional field, e.g. administration (personnel/human resouce management/planning), investigation and intelligence, logistics, finance, fire prevention campaign, etc., or those who have spent most of their active service as staff officer or in administrative assignments.

j. MERIT - refers to the qualities or characteristics of an officer who deserves recognition or commendation.

k. OTHER POSITIONS OF RESPONSIBILITY - refers to positions of importance other than the key positions in the BFP, such as: Chief of the Support Units under the Command Group, Division Chiefs of the Directorial Staff, Command Group of Regional Office, Regional Division Chiefs and Disbursing Officers.

l. PERSONNEL PLACEMENT BOARDS (PPBs) - a board created at all levels which shall include a representative from the Office of the Secretary/ (OSEC). The Board shall deliberate and recommend the propose reassignment, designation and detail of personnel. It shall be composed of the following:

BFP NHQ PPB:

Chairperson: Deputy Chief for Administration

Vice-Chairperson: Chief Directorial Staff

Members: Director for Human Resource Development Director for Personnel and Records Management Director for Intelligence and Investigation

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Director for Information and Communications TechnologyManagementDirector for OperationDirector for PlansDirector for Fire Safety and Enforcement Director for Comprollership Director for Logistics

Head Secretariat: Member:

Chief, Human Resource Management Division Chief, Personnel Placement Section

Regional PPB:

Chairperson: Assistant Regional Director for AdministrationVice-Chairperson: Assistant Regional Director for Operation

Members:

Head Secretariat: Member:

Regional Chief of Staff Chief, Operations Division Chief, Logistics Division

Chief, Administrative DivisionChief, Human Resource Management Section

District/Provincial PPB:

Chairperson: Chief, Administrative BranchVice-Chairperson: Chief, Operation Branch

Members:

Secretariat:

Chief, Morale and Welfare Section Chief, Intelligence and Investigation Section Chief, Logistics Section

Chief, Personnel Section

m. PENDING ADMINISTRATIVE CASE - An administrative case is deemed pending when a formal charge has already been filed/instituted by the appropriate disciplining authority until a decision thereof becomes final and executory. A complaint undergoing preliminary investigation shall not be considered an administrative case.

n. PERFORMANCE RATING - the work output on a position held for two (2) rating periods immediately preceding the evaluation process for probable designation to a new position.

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o. PLACEMENT - refers to the selection and designation of an officer to a key

position or other positions of responsibility.

p REASSIGNMENT - movement of an employee from one organizational unit ■ to another in the same department or agency which does not involve a

reduction in rank, status or salary (Rule ill. Section 6.a. MC No. 40, s. 1998).

a SELECTION - the systematic method of determining the best qualified candidate for the position based on merit and fitness and the candidate s ability to perform the duties and responsibility of the position to ensure that th key officers have ascendancy over their subordinates and possess the highest standards of discipline and sense of responsibility.

r TECHNICAL SERVICE OFFICERS - Commissioned Officers who wereoriginally absorbed to the BFP. either directly o;throu9h.latfa'of the highly specialized and technical qualification, such as, but not limited toDoctor of Medicine, Members of the Philippine Bar, Chaplain, CivH En9'n®®r®’ Mechanical Engineers, Electrical Engineers Chennical ’ “'andArchitects Criminologists, CPAs, Nurses, Physical Therapists, Dentists and Information Officers, Commissioned Officers who possess or may acquire the same highly specialized and technical skills but originally commissioned in the regular corps of officers shall be considered as line officers.

s THIRD LEVEL OFFICERS/SENIOR OFFICERS - Commissioned Officers

with the rank of Fire Senior Superintendent up to Director.

t TRAINING - refers to the mandatory training requirement aPPr°Prfrank of the BFP personnel. It is a process which intends to establish and improve the capabilities of fire officers/personnel in their respective roles.

II WORK HISTORY/WORK EXPERIENCE - number of years incurred in the ^?sert mnk by a candidate, including years of work experience while holding

temporary status.RULE V. GOVERNING PRINCIPLES IN THE REASSIGNMENT, DESIGNATION,

AND DETAIL OF BFP PERSONNEL;

a Each BFP officer shall go through the assignment rotation in command’and training duties including exposure to a variety of field, provincial, regional Tnd " I headquarters9 experiences to enhance his/her competence to

serve the bureau.

b. BFP officers shall serve at least one (1) year and at most three (3) years in a

prescribed position except key officers.

other geographical duty areas.

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Exception:

1. Those who are relieved for cause due to administrative/criminal cases, inefficiency, unsatisfactory performance, abusive conducts and other acts that are inimical to the service.

2. Those who are required by the Chief, BFP to stay longer in one assignment in the interest of the service.

d. Replacements should be qualified to take over the positions of the respective officers to be relieved or rotated out of the unit concerned.

e. Officers who are newly appointed in the service shall be assigned/detailed to BFP stations after completion of orientation and mandatory training, except those in the technical service.

In the case of those newly appointed in the technical services that had already undergone orientation in their areas of specialization, they shall be

assigned to their respective technical service units.

f. BFP personnel with the rank of F01 to SF04 may be assigned in geographical duty areas nearest their permanent places of resic^nce after they have rendered at least five (5) years of service to the BFP. They could only be relieved or reassigned for cause to another locality preferably within the district or province or to another province within the region. Only in extreme cases based on justifiable reason shall such reassignments be made

outside the region.

They may choose their specialization in various functions of the BFP such as fire suppression, emergency medical and rescue services, intelligence investigation, finance, communication, electronics, medical/dental support and other field of specialization, in order to maximize their contribution towards the attainment of the BFP over-all mission and vision.

g. For those with the ranks of Inspector and up, their relief and reassignment may be effected when the exigency of the service so requires.

h. Chief of Offices shall insure that their subordinates are regularly rotated to other positions after a year and at most three (3) years in their current position and after five (5) years to other geographical duty areas where they have not

yet served.

i Officers scheduled to be replaced will not be relieved/reassigned from the unit concerned until their respective replacements have reported for duty in the unit concerned. The relief of officers concerned will be effected upon

completion of the turn-over of responsibilities.

i Key officers must serve in a particular office/unit/station for not more(2) years, after which they shall be reassigned to other office/unit/station^ Hovvever, respective designating authorities may reassign or transfer them to

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other office/unit/station any time in the exigency of the service and/or for any valid cause. Provided, that a BFP Officer shall not be relieved or recalled from his/her assignment or position on account of change of leadership in the BFP. Provided, further, that the personnel action of transfer shall not be resorted to as a form of administrative sanction.

k. The practice of assigning BFP personnel within their respective places of residence is premised on certain factors, such as:

1. Familiarity with the people, the culture, the terrain and other conditions prevailing thereat.

2. BFP personnel do not have to rent living quarters if assigned in their places of residence. Maintaining a single household is beneficial to meet expenses for the family’s basic needs.

3. The “extended family” culture in the Philippines also provides greater sense of security having around relatives ready to help and support one another, both emotionally and financially. Allowing BFP personnel to stay with his/her spouse promotes close family ties.

l. All BFP Chief Superintendents shall, as much as possible, be assigned in the National Headquarters (NHQ) to compose the Command Group and Directors of Directorates.

m. There shall be no concurrent assignment for Officers assigned as City/Municipal Fire Marshals.

n. Key Officers that are due for retirement may within a year before his/her retirement date be given preferential assignments specifically in areas near their hometown or home region.

o. Officers assigned as Disbursing Officers/Budget Officers and other finance positions shall serve only for a maximum of three (3) years In such area without any extension or reassignment to other finance positions.

p. Detail without consent shall be allowed only for a period of one (1) year. While detail with consent shall be allowed for a maximum of three (3) years. The extension or renewal of the detail shall be discretionary on the part of the parent agency. The office of the Personnel Accounting Section, Administrative Division in coordination with the Office of the Personnel Placement Section, Human Resource Management Division shall monitor the status of personnel under detail service.

For Non-Uniformed Personnel (NUPs):

q. Reassignment of NUPs with station-specific place of work indicated in their appointments within the geographical location of the agency shall be allowed only for a maximum period of one (1) year. The restoration or return to the

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original post/assignment shall be automatic without the need of any order of restoration/revocation of the order of reassignment.

r. If an appointment is not-station specific, the one-year maximum period of reassignment within the geographical location of the agency shall not apply. However, the employee concerned may request for a recall of the reassignment citing his/her reasons why he/she wants to go back to his/her original station. The reassignment may also be revoked or recalled by the appointing officer/authority or be declared not valid by the Civil Service Commission or a competent court, on appeal.

s. Reassignment is presumed to be regular and made in the interest or exigency of public service unless proven otherwise or if it constitutes constructive dismissal.

RULE VI. DESCRIPTION AND APPLICATION OF CRITERIA:

For purposes of objectivity in evaluating the merit and fitness of officers for selection and placement to key positions and other positions of responsibility, the following criteria shall be observed;

a. Work History (25%)

This criterion ascertain the well roundedness and flexibility of an officer as manifested by his previous field and administrative duties. He/she should not only be knowledgeable on staff and related functions but as well firefighting operations, emergency medical and rescue services, fire safety inspection, fire arson investigation and fire prevention campaign. Officers without any field or administrative assignment automatically get a five percent (5%) deduction.

b. Awards, Recognition Performance Rating (25%)

Under this criterion, all the awards and recognition received by a candidate or his unit, his accomplishment of assigned tasks or mission, and performance rating shall be evaluated and rated accordingly.

c. Education and Training (20%)

An officer’s educational background and training normally determine his area of specialization and expertise. Candidates with education required under Republic Act No. 9263 and trainings related to the position applied for get the maximum points while those without the related education and trainings get five percent (5%) deduction.

d. Rank requirement under RA No. 9263 and Seniority (20%)

Pursuant to Section 7 of RA No. 9263, no person shall be designated to key positions in the BFP unless he/she has met the rank requirement prescribed. Likewise, the time-in-grade in the present rank shall also be

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considered along with the length of service as commissioned officer and the date of compulsory retirement if the candidates have the same retirement date. An officer with appropriate rank for the position and the most senior in terms of time-in-grade automatically gets twenty percent (20%) while the rest gets one percent (1%) less for every full year difference in Time-in-Grade (TIG) as that of the most senior and another one percent (1%) for every rank difference if short in rank requirement.

e. Geographical Duty Assignment (10%)

This refers to the ability of an officer to adapt to different environmental setting. His/her previous assignment whether in rural or urban area shall be considered. Officers who have no urban or rural assignment get an automatic three percent (3%) deduction. Similarly, those who have no national, regional or local assignment get three percent (3%) deduction each.

RULE VII. REQUIRED RANK CLASSIFICATION:

Designation of positions shall be in accordance with the provisions of Republic Act No. 9263 as amended by Republic Act No. 9592. The required rank and qualification standard shall, as much as possible be complied with:

POSITION RANKChief Directorial Staff Rank of Chief Superintendent, in case of

non-availability, at least with a rank ofSenior Superintendent

Regional Director At least with a rank of SeniorSuperintendent

NCR District Fire Marshal At least with a rank of SeniorSuperintendent

Assistant Regional Directors for Administration/Operation, Regional Chief Directorial Staff, ProvincialFire Marshal, District Fire Marsha!

With a rank of Superintendent

City Fire Marshal At least with a rank of Chief InspectorMunicipal Fire Marshal With a rank of Senior Inspector

RULE VIII. DELEGATION OF AUTHORITY:

Reassignment/designation/detail of personnel shall be in accordance with the provisions of the approved delegation of authority, to wit;

On Reassiqnment/Desiqnation:

POSmON/DESIGNATIONRECOMMENDING

AUTHORITYDESIGNATINGAUTHORITY

Chief, BFP SILG President of thePhilippines

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POSITION/DESIGNATION RECOMMENDINGAUTHORITY

DESIGNATINGAUTHORITY

DCA, DCO and CDS SILG through the recommendation of the Chief, BFP through BFP Personnel Placement Board

President of thePhilippines

DCA, DCO and CDS in an Officer-in-Charge Capacity

SILG

NHQ Directors of Directorates

Chief, BFP through BFP NHQ Personnel Placement Board

SILG (for confirmation)

NHQ Uniformed Personnel below Directors of Directorates

BFP NHQ Personnel Placement Board (assistance)

Chief, BFP

Division Chiefs and below for NUPs

BFP NHQ Personnel Placement Board (assistance)

Chief, BFP

Regional Directors Chief, BFP through BFP NHQ Personnel Placement Board

SILG (for confirmation)

ARDA, ARDO and RCS Regional Director through Regional Personnel Placement Board

Chief, BFP (for confirmation)

Provincial/District Fire Marshal

Regional Director through Regional Personnel Placement Board

Chief, BFP (for confirmation)

SILG (for information)

Municipal/City Fire Marshal Provincial/District Fire Marsha! through Provincial/District Personnel Placement Board

Regional Director (for confirmation)

All City/Municipal personnel under HIS jurisdiction

Provincial/District Fire Marshal

All regional personnel under his jurisdiction

Regional Director

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On Detail/Recall of Personnel to Inter-Agency Task Force and Other GovernmentAgencies:

CONCERNED PERSONNEL APPROVING AUTHORITY

Personnel of BFP SILG

All NHQ personnel Chief, BFP

All regional personnel under his jurisdiction

Regional Director

RULE IX. PLACEMENT PROCEDURES:

a. The designation of Deputy Chief for Administration, Deputy Chief for Operations and Chief Directorial Staff shall be recommended by the Chief, BFP through a BFP NHQ PPB Resolution. It shall be accompanied by a legal justification as to why incumbent is being replaced vis-a-vis the qualification of replacement.

b. The recommendation for the designation of NHQ Directors of Directorates and Regional Directors shall be covered by a BFP NHQ PPB Resolution. Said resolution shall be submitted to the Office of the SILG for confirmation.

c. For the designation of Assistant Regional Director for Administration, Assistant Regional Director for Operations, Regional Chief of Staff, District Fire Marshal and Provincial Fire Marshal, a Regional Personnel Placement Board (RPPB) Resolution recommending the reassignment and designation of BFP Officers should be issued. The approved resolution shall be forwarded to the Directorate for Human Resource Development, BFP NHQ for the preparation of Bureau Order confirming the reassignment/designation of BFP Officers.

d. The reassignment and designation as City/Municipal Fire Marshal shall becovered by a Provincial/District Personnel Placement Board Resolution. The approved resolution shall be submitted to the Regional Administrative Division for issuance of Regional Order confirming thereassignment/designation of BFP Officers/personnel.

e. In case the vacancy is within the BFP National Headquarters, the BFP- NHQ PPB shall be primarily responsible in the preparation of Resolution.

RULE X. GRIEVANCE/FEEDBACK MECHANISM:

The BFP Grievance Committee shall address all complaints, protest and comments on reassignment/designation/detail of personnel.

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RULE XL SANCTIONS:

Regional Directors, Heads of Offices and other Officials who failed to strictly comply with the provisions of this policy shall be relieved immediately and shall be meted with appropriate sanctions after due process.

RULE XII. REPEALING CLAUSE:

All office memoranda, orders and circulars incosistent with the provisions of this Circular are hereby amended and/or modified accordingly.

RULE XIII. EFFECTIVITY:

This Circular shall take effect immediately.

LEONAF^-RBANAGO FIRE DIRECTOR (DSC) f Chi^L BFP ^

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